Soucy Strives to Set Students Up for Success

• Name: Trish Soucy, 31, has been the Supervisor of Humanities K-12 since this past October. Before moving into the position, she was a sixth grade literature teacher at Lazar Middle School. She has been in the Montville Township school district for five years.
• Position: “It’s a large position. I am basically the department supervisor for English and social studies K through 12,” explained Soucy about her job as the Supervisor of Humanities. “I work a lot with teachers. I do a lot of teacher observations. That allows me to go into classrooms and see how teachers are teaching. What they are teaching. Evaluate them. And then they come to me afterwards and we can have a conversation about instructional technique, and how students are learning, and the great things about the lesson, maybe further ideas about how to teach the lesson. So that the teachers, in Montville, are really giving the students, and allowing the students, to learn, and they’re being effective teachers, and students are learning, and there’s achievement.”
• Career: Soucy graduated from Drew University with a double major in English and Behavioral Science. She received her Supervisor Certificate from Rutgers. Currently Soucy is completing her second masters in Educational Administration. “I have always been interested in curriculum and instruction,” she said. “As a teacher … I found it very important, that I gave my heart into this position. I worked so hard, I gave everything I possibly could, and I would see my kids … my students, go on to the next grade. And, I just wanted to make sure, and most of the time, obviously, they were in good hands, but, I always had that anxiety like, ‘I want to make sure that they’re going to the best teacher.’ I kind of thought of that, and that is what drew me to this position. I wanted to make sure that I could help all other teachers, who have students, be the best they could be.”
• How Long in Montville: Before coming to the Montville Township school district, Soucy first taught in a regional school in Connecticut. Upon arriving in New Jersey she spent a year in St. Francis, while receiving her New Jersey certification. Following that she was in Crossroads South Middle School in South Brunswick. Soucy and her partner live in Bedminster. “I like it down there,” she said. “It’s kind of less crowded.”
• Goals: “To work with teachers to the best of my ability to make sure instruction in all the schools is the best that it can be,” Soucy said. She plans to focus on differentiated instruction and teaching teachers to recognize all the needs, and all the strengths, of students in a classroom. She feels implementing differentiated instruction will help all students succeed, and will reduce unnecessary stress for students.  Additionally, as supervisor, she can develop integrated lesson plans that will combine English instruction with social studies curriculum. In this way, writing, and other skills, will be reinforced through both disciplines.
• Favorite Thing About Montville: “The students,” said Soucy. “I love kids, so, obviously, that would be my favorite part.  I find a lot of them are wise beyond their years because they’ve traveled in Europe, or they’ve been to camps and learned things.” Soucy likes learning about each student’s heritage and traditions. “I like getting to know them.”
• Something You Would Like to See Changed: “If I could change anything, I think it would be to lessen the stress level of students,” Soucy said. “I think we tend to put a lot of pressure on students in Montville. I would love to, kind of see, not only the school district, but, also the parents at home, try to understand a 12-year-old’s point of view and really try to put less pressure on some of the kids.”
• Hobbies: Soucy has a lot of energy. She likes to read. “Obviously,” she said, “I am the supervisor of humanities.” Not only does she read books, but she downloads books to her iPod Touch and listens to them on her way to work, and while walking her dog. “I am very passionate about being a good owner to my dog,” Soucy said. “She’s a rescue dog.” Soucy likes to give her dog lots of “time and energy.” In addition, Soucy enjoys hanging out with her friends, running with her dog, visiting her mom in Connecticut, playing Mario Kart on Nintendo Wii, and working on her town house. “I like painting. The color of our walls frequently changes.”
• Advice for a Teacher: “Understand where every student is coming from and their background and history, and think about the whole child rather than that multiple choice test,” Soucy said.
• Advice for a Student: “Work hard but remember to have fun.”
• Philosophy: “That the world is not here to serve me, but I’m here to serve the world.”

Download the movie