March 7, 2017

Dear Luke, Lise and Lori,

It is with great privilege and honor that I write this letter as a peer observer of Hannah Lynch for her
Evaluation Process. From my initial contact with Hannah during her job interview at Bay to my
current daily work with her, I continue to be impressed with her immense work ethic, insightful lesson
designs, thoughtful classroom presentation and commitment to her own and her students growth
mindset. She is a most valued colleague and friend; I am deeply grateful for her presence at the Bay
School.

Strengths in the Classroom

I have had the luxury of spending time in Hannahs classroom both informally (as I work in the room
to set up a lab) and formally as her peer observer for this evaluation process. Each day, Hannahs
organization is apparent in the agenda she writes on the board, her quick completion of administrative
tasks (like attendance) and her timely start to class. Her students respond to this clear direction with a
sense of purpose; it is clear the expectation is that they are to make use of the time in this classroom.
The other immediately observable fact is the solid rapport she has with her students. Students show a
level of comfort in her classroom that is balanced with respect. This was demonstrated by the inquiry
and clarification questions they asked during class.

In terms of lesson planning, I will focus here on the lessons I observed in Chemistry 1B. Hannahs
students were working on a capstone project to end their Chemistry course. The project asked students
to apply the chemistry they had learned to the environmental issue of ocean acidification (OA). The
final product was a video that had required content and the flexibility for students to be creative in its
format. The project was well scaffolded: students were directed through experiments to further their
understanding of the concepts of OA while also spiraling back to previously learned chemistry that
they needed to apply to OA and portray in the video. Students worked diligently through the
experiments, initiating discussions within their groups of how the results before them related to the
overarching question, and how they could use the experimental results within the script of their video.
While keeping tabs on everyone in the room, Hannah efficiently identified groups that were
struggling with this work and guided them to better understanding. Although I didnt see the final
products, I know from teaching students who have done this project that they retain a solid
understanding of this material.

I work with Hannah almost daily on lesson plans for the Biology 1 course -- which gives me bias as
well as great insight into her lesson planning. Hannah is thoughtful in her use of diverse pedagogy,
and also consistently reflects on the effectiveness of lessons. Because of this, the Biology lessons are
never stagnant and always getting better.

Areas for Growth in the Classroom

Hannah applies a growth mindset to her work as a teacher. She is a perfectionist always striving to
improve her work, and the work of her students. Because of this, it is difficult for me to identify areas
for growth as Hannah is constantly growing. One thing I know is that Hannah can be very hard on
herself because of her high standards. This can take the form of her being disappointed in herself

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when students dont perform well on an assessment. Typically her disappointment fuels her redesign
of lessons for the next iteration of the course. She also holds herself to a very high standard when
grading written work of students. To her credit, she wants to provide accurate and constructive
feedback as well as a fair grade, but the time that this takes can consume her. Finding a more efficient
way to do this will help her sustainability.

Role as a Department Member

There are two levels within the department that Hannah works: on course teams and as a part of the
full department. I feel very lucky to have had Hannah on the Biology 1 team since she started at Bay.
She is a reflective, engaged and productive member in terms of lesson planning and determining core
content, skills and pedagogical approaches. In addition, she initiated the creation of an agenda for our
course team meetings (and the chemistry team meetings) that has helped to identify and distribute the
work load, making these meetings more efficient. As someone who often shares a classroom with her,
I am also aware and thankful of her follow through on tasks as mundane as cleaning up after a lab to
the more complex tasks like rewriting a lab handout. She is always dependable for the high quality
and timeliness of her work.

In the larger department setting, Hannah is a frequent contributor to discussions ranging from the
mission critical (like identification of core content and skills for a science student and the impact of
schedule changes on science courses) to the more humdrum but necessary things like ordering of new
equipment. Despite being early in her career as a teacher, she contributes as an equal and is highly
respected by our team.

As a teacher, Hannah has also been willing to challenge herself, particularly when the science team
needed her help. Last year, she took on developing a new courses (Human Health and Disease) and
pushed herself to incorporate project based learning concepts into the new curriculum. She also
sought advice and feedback from others in the creation of this course. For a teacher in her second year
at the school, this new course was a challenge which Hannah handled with the steadiness of a veteran.

Role as a Community Member

In her role as a greater member of the community, Hannahs commitment is clearly evident. She has a
strong relationship with her advisory, and has made an effort to support each member of her group by
going to events outside of the school day like sports games and plays. She actively volunteers for
additional opportunities: she helped to design and furnish the faculty lounge in the Manson Room; she
is a member of the Conduct Review Council; she served on the Learning Management Committee and
she has volunteered to work on a committee as part of the strategic planning process. In the time and
energy she dedicates to her work at Bay, she is consistently strengthening the fabric of the
community.

It is my distinct honor to work with Hannah and to be able to observe the many ways in which her
impact on this community helps make Bay the exceptional place it is. We are truly lucky to have
Hannah as a member of our faculty.

Sincerely,

Nettie Kelly