Middletown AreaSchool District

Susan L. Bracht spent her 19 years at MASD back and forth between Fink and Reid elementary schools teaching second and fourth grades at both schools. She also served as a Professional Staff Mentor for new teachers. Some of Mrs. Bracht’s favorite parts about teaching were the funny things students would say, do or write and the school-wide celebrations. “I am going to miss the excitement and smiles of former students when we pass in the hallways and getting to watch them grow,” said Mrs. Bracht. “I will also miss my inspiring, supportive, and hilarious colleagues.”

Donald L. Cowsert has been a faithful, cheerful, and well-loved custodian at MAHS and Reid for almost 12 years. Don would greet every single student, teacher and visitor when they passed him in the hallway. “I will miss the teachers and the kids,” says Don. “I have a lot of favorite memories. A highlight was Custodians’ Day when the teachers and children would just overwhelm me with cards and chocolates. And all day long the children would wish me a happy day.” 

(Edward) Scott Crawford made the Industrial Technology classrooms at MAMS and MAHS his second home for the last 29 years; 20 years at MAMS and 9 years at MAHS. Outside of the classroom, Crawford served as a baseball coach and a class advisor, and designed and built sets for performing arts productions. In addition to fond memories of coaching, field trips and faculty trips, Crawford says he will miss the camaraderie with staff, seeing the smiles when students are challenged and they solve problems, and witnessing the pride in students after they completed their projects. But one of his favorite memories will forever be burned into his memory. “Working in the shop provided daily funny moments. One day I caught my pants on fire while demonstrating welding. I walked around leaving a smoke trail until a student noticed and calming tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘Mr. Crawford, I think your pants are on fire.’ We could learn from our mistakes, laugh about them, and not repeat.” 

William Fair began his Blue Raider teaching career as a Middle School Special Education Teacher. Five years later he transferred to MAHS where he taught for 10 years. In 2013, Fair moved to Reid Elementary to finish his 22-year teaching career at the elementary level as a Learning Support Teacher. Fair also served as a Special Education Department Chair. Mr. Fair retired at the start of the 2019-2020 school year so he has almost a year to look backed at his MASD career. “As I think back, I think of many of the teachers and support staff I worked with over the years. I miss working and planning with them to help all of our students. I had the opportunity to teach at all three levels, and at every school I was a part of, I was surrounded by absolutely fantastic individuals, and we worked so well together as a team." In addition to teaching, Mr. Fair coached boys’ and girls’ tennis. “My most vivid memories come from the tennis courts. I remember important matches like they were played yesterday; where students I coached pulled off upsets, competed in districts, and won Mid-Penn Championships. Tennis also gave me one of my most embarrassing moments. My first year of coaching the boys' tennis team, we played a match at James Buchanan. We didn't have navigation systems back then, and I had never been there before. I missed the exit we were supposed to take and I look up and see a ‘Welcome to Maryland’ sign. I remember hearing from the back of the school van, ‘Coach, I think you are lost...we are now in Maryland.’”

Robert A. Flury spent five years as a custodian and a part-time courier in the MASD Operations Department. Flury will always remember the kindness and thoughtfulness of the entire MASD staff. He loved getting to work alongside of such caring, supportive individuals who he misses greatly.

Cynthia J. Harbeson joined Blue Raider nation in 1992 and served as a Speech and Language Clinician at all MASD schools for the following 27 years. In 2015, she added the role as Gifted Teacher and she also served as a Professional Staff Mentor for new teachers. Her time at MASD includes many “Where were you when…?” moments. “Many significant national and world events occurred while I was working within the District,” says Harbeson. “I was at the old Demey building when the space shuttle Challenger exploded after takeoff. I was at Fink when terrorists attacked New York, DC, and Flight 93 on 9/11/01. I was on the bottom floor of MAMS when we felt the earthquake." Some of her more favorable memories consist of the funny things her students said, the laughter shared with colleagues, and watching her students’ skills improve. Mrs. Harbeson says she will most definitely miss the children and her colleagues. “They both inspired me to be a better therapist and learn more professionally.” When asked to share a funny or embarrassing moment that happened during her time at MASD, Mrs. Harbeson’s reply was simply, “Not on your life.” 

Karyl A. Hawkins began her 27-year Middletown career at Demey as an Instructional Support Teacher for eight years. She then served in the same role at Fink for two years and then at Reid for five years. In 2009 she switched to the role of Learning Support Teacher at Reid where she finished out her teaching career. Hawkins also served as a Professional Staff Mentor for new teachers. Mrs. Hawkins sums up her time at MASD well: “I will miss the people and the learning experiences I shared with them. I can honestly say that each day I came to school (and recently, those days I spent teaching from home) I learned something new from the adults (all staff and parents) with whom I worked and the children. It is a humbling experience to have worked and learned with them. A funny and favorite experience happened years ago during spring assessments. I had spent the previous day in the sun for the first time that year. That meant my freckles became much more obvious. A student who was sitting directly across from me had to read three one-minute passages aloud. After the first reading he studied my face and said, ‘You have spots.’ After the second reading he looked under the table and said, ‘You have spots on your feet.’ After the third reading he earnestly told me, ‘Bananas get spots when they are rotten.’ It was a good reminder to use what the students know. I hope he didn’t think I was rotten!” 

Diane L. Higgins joined MASD in 1992 as an Emotional Support Teacher at Demey. She later served in the same position at Mansberger, Kunkel and Reid where she finished out her 28-year teaching career. She was also a Professional Staff Mentor for new teachers. “I will miss seeing students' beaming smiles when they have succeeded! I will also miss working and seeing the many wonderful colleagues that I had the pleasure of working with. I was very fortunate to have amazing paraprofessionals and form many friendships over the years. The year I team taught 3rd grade with Justin Smith was the absolute best year ever!! The students excelled and we all had so much fun!”

Marianne Moore started her 24-year career with the District as an Instructional Aide at Fink and Mansberger in the spring of 1990. The following school year, she resigned her full time aide position to become a substitute aide so she could complete her teacher certification. In 1996 she started her first full time teaching position in the District as a first grade teacher at Fink. She later taught second grade at Demey, where she also served as the Technology Assistant, and also taught second and fifth grades at Reid. She also held the position of Elementary Mathematics Coach and served as a Technology Trainer, Elementary Science Material Coordinator, and Elementary Mathematics Department Chair. In 2000, Mrs. Moore was selected as the MASD Teacher of the Year. Mrs. Moore will miss building a classroom family with new faces each year, collaborating with her 5th grade team, and participating in opportunities for professional development. Her favorite memories include helping to create the Reid Teaching Garden and the nature trail, raising frogs in the classroom, the 5th Grade picnic in Elizabethtown, and seeing former students at MAHS graduations and post-graduation endeavors. Mrs. Moore explains one of her most embarrassing moments in her own words: “Years ago an informal staff basketball game was held as a benefit in the high school gym. Having absolutely no knowledge of basketball, I was persuaded to join the Fink team only because they were desperate for more players. Somehow, I got the ball! I started running with the intention of taking a shot. At the time, Mr. Terry Martin and I were working together at Fink, and he had a pretty good idea of what I had in mind. And as you might know, Terry knows basketball. So he quickly approached me and asked for the ball. I refused and told him that I was taking the shot. At that point, he grabbed the ball, and as a true friend will do, he saved the day and saved me some embarrassment. As you might have suspected, I was heading to the wrong hoop!” 

Dion J. Mumma began her MASD career in 1998 as a Central Office Secretary. In 2007 she transferred into the position of Transportation and Child Accounting Coordinator. During the 2009-2010 school year, her position was changed to Transportation Coordinator. Ms. Mumma will miss working with all the wonderful people over the years. One of her favorite memories was the fun-filled holiday gatherings the Operations Department held each year which included crazy competitive games. One memory she would like to forget, however, happened during a bus evacuation drill at the high school. She tripped on a raised portion of a sidewalk and fell to her knees. It certainly was a great visual to teach students about safety.

Lisa M. Smith began her 15-year Blue Raider career as a high school language arts teacher. In 2013, she transferred to MAMS as a language arts/reading teacher. Outside the classroom she served as a Link Crew advisor, class advisor, and Pathway chair. Smith says she will miss her colleagues the most but will also miss those relaxed moments simply laughing with the kids. Her favorite memories happen when she runs into former students at Giant. Many of them recount stories of their time in her classroom and how she affected their lives. “The funny part is how they address me. Since my name has changed several times during my teaching career, I can usually figure out how old they are and when they graduated by which last name they call me.” Oh and by the way, her last name has changed yet again. Ms. Smith got married in June and is now Mrs. Tucker. 

Cynthia Strachan spent her 32 years moving between Demey, Mansberger, Fink, and Reid as a Special Education Teacher and Learning Support Teacher. Mrs. Strachan will greatly miss the students, teachers and staff. Some of her favorite memories include seeing her students have that “AHA moment,” and all of the fun schoolwide events such as Field Day, Dancing Day and Mini-Thon. She will never forget the time she needed to order two packages of Sticky Notes and accidentally ordered a gross (that’s 144 Sticky Notepads!). Her school was well supplied for quite some time.