Thomas, Matthew Memorial Scholarship
Mr. Ken and Mrs. Ursal Yankowsky established The Matthew Thomas Memorial Scholarship in memory of their grandson, Matthew Thomas, who died unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm in spring 2013. Matt was a student in the master’s program with Licensure Program in Curricular and Instructional Studies. Matt was studying to become an English teacher. Matt was a participant in the University of Akron/Barberton Collaboration when he passed away.
The pre-student teaching class for high school English teachers, Instructional Techniques, was held at Barberton High School this year. Under the supervision of University instructor Dr. Hal Foster and Barberton English teacher Mrs. Brittany LaCroix, University education students learned by doing. After a month of planning, Foster’s students took over Mrs. LaCroix’s eleventh-grade English class. The University of Akron student teams taught three units: A reading workshop, a writing research paper workshop, and a reader’s theater unit based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare. Also, the University students became one-on-one mentors to the high school students.
The project seeks out academically challenged high school students and offers them a rigorous and very engaging curriculum with individualized instruction to help the high school students reach their potential. The project directors hope this will spur many of the high school students to consider college.
Also, the project gives real-life classroom experience to future teachers of high school students, who are some of the most challenging to teach. Currently the project has added an additional English teacher, Mrs. Heather Weeks; a social studies teacher, Mr. Rob Walker; and a professor of social studies eEducation, Dr. Brad Maguth.
The Matthew Thomas Memorial Scholarship will be given to a full-time University student or students, undergraduate or graduate, who has completed the Barberton Collaboration Experience. Criteria include:
1. Quality of instruction
2. Dedication to project
3. Professional attitude
4. Successful mentoring of high school students
Scholarship recipients will be selected by Dr. Hal Foster, University of Akron, and Mrs. Brittany LaCroix, English teacher at Barberton High School.
鈥�