People to People: Teacher bound for Russell

Sarah L:ynch/The Independent

Ashland September 28, 2006 11:32 pm

— She didn’t think it was for real. Who gets an invitation to Russia in the mail every day anyway? After a little research, she discovered that the letter she received on May 9 was indeed legitimate. Now, Elaine Preston, a teacher at Hatcher Elementary School, is headed to St. Petersburg, Russia, on Nov. 3.
Preston, a special education teacher for 25 years, will make the journey as part of the 2006 U.S.-Russia Joint Education Conference, part of the People to People Ambassador Programs’ Exceptional Needs Delegation.
According to information on the organization, in the spirit of shared experiences, participants will discuss common problems in the education of children with disabilities, compare recent findings, and evaluate areas for further collaboration.
As the only teacher in the state invited to this particular forum, she believes her years of experience prompted the invitation.
“There are so many people doing so many wonderful things in this district. I’m just honored,” she said.
“The only reason I can think of regarding why I was invited is because I have always been a special education teacher. I am one of a few teachers who have remained in the field and not moved on to something else.”
Preston said she has also been involved with the Special Olympics since 1985.
Jill Scott, a delegation leader with the University of Texas, wrote the letter of invitation to Preston.
An excerpt reads, “We believe you will contribute valid expertise to the mission while gaining immeasurable knowledge through the experience.”
“Overwhelming” and “surprising” are adjectives Preston uses to describe her feelings about the letter.
“I tell people all the time that I feel like it’s surreal,” she said.
Other teachers from across the United States, as well Russian teachers, will explore the Russian education system, examine the issue of exceptional needs students, and discuss successful techniques and effective strategies.
People to People International, a nonpolitical, private-sector organization, was first established in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. During the past 50 years, PTPI ambassadors have traveled to all seven continents with the motto to “promote peace through international understanding.”
“Teachers become students as they step into a classroom in a foreign land. For education professionals, lifelong learning is the key to excellent teaching. Educators share that common bond with their colleagues around the world,” the organization noted on its Web site, ptpi.org.
According to the ambassadors program, teachers will “visit classrooms, observe teaching methods and meet with international counterparts.”
Preston will assume responsibility for the cost of the trip to St. Petersburg, estimated at $4,500.
“What I am really excited about it going to a Russian school to tour it and meet the teachers and students there to observe the differences and similarities of educating special-needs students as compared to our system,” she said.
She’s also looking forward to obtaining new information and ideas to bring back to her school and students.
“I am really grateful the school district is willing to let me go for a week.”