This year the Haddonfield School District has honored Ms. Lau and Ms. Penna with the Educator of The Year Award. 

Ms. Lau has been teaching computer science at HMHS for four years, prior to this she also taught biology, chemistry, and math. During her time at HMHS, she said that one of her many goals is for her students to be proud of themselves and gain the confidence to do amazing things. In an interview, Ms. Lau explained that a memory she’ll never forget from teaching here is when one of her students told her that he got into the college program of his choice. He was accepted into this program purely for his talent and his potential in STEM fields. Over the years, she has taught her students that perseverance is the key to success, especially in computer programming due to the mistakes and problems that can occur. Not only is that true for computer programming, but it also applies to everyday life. 

While at HMHS, she has created two programs: the computer science program and robotics. She explained that if she had unlimited time and resources, she would create a drone flying, drone programming, and drone completing club. She believes that drone flying will be very relevant in the future, and having a drone flying club here would be beneficial for the school. She hopes that all of her students that graduate remember how much she cares about them and that they can do amazing things. Ms. Lau sees something unique and promising in all of her students, and hopes they visit her in the future to share their accomplishments. 

The other winner of the award, Ms. Penna, has been a counselor at HMHS for six years. She started in the fall of 2020 and is not only a counselor for HMHS, but for the whole district. She’s the only SAC (Student Assistance Councilor) for the district, so she works with the elementary schools and middle school along with the high school. By getting to work in all five schools, she found that her favorite experiences are when she gets to collaborate with other councilors to figure out what works best for the students. In the beginning of her counseling career, she was working in a special services district where she would be called to crisis and aid with other counselors, but now at HMHS, she deals with crisis by helping to create systems that address things as quickly as possible. 

When asked what she thinks are important qualities of becoming a counselor, she explained that “For someone who wants to become a counselor, something that’s very important is being able to meet someone where they’re at, and that applies to a lot of different areas. If you want to be an elementary counselor, you need to be able to speak with six-year-olds and nine-year-olds differently because they’re at different levels.” She also said that it’s important to meet people at the level they’re at and acknowledge where they are in their own personal journey. She wants the students who have graduated to remember that someone cares about them and someone who supports them and wants them to succeed.

Thank you to Ms. Lau and Ms. Penna for always being there for their students and creating safe spaces for them to feel comfortable in.