U.S. Army (Ret.) Command Sergeant Major, Sherman Fuller, becomes the new Principal at Global Village Academy Colorado Springs

U.S. Army (Ret.) Command Sergeant Major, Sherman Fuller, recently became the new Principal at Global Village Academy (GVA) in Colorado Springs. Fuller enlisted in the Army in 1978 and spent the next twenty-five years developing his leadership, integrity, courage, dependability, loyalty, judgment and organizational skills. Fuller was a member of the Elite Ranger Regiment. He has two combat tours in Panama and Granada.

    
When he retired in 2003, Fuller contacted Troops to Teachers to embark on his new career as an educator. GVA touts itself as a school with military traditions and world language excellence. The school also has hired two other transitioning veterans, also products of the Troops to Teachers program, whom have all agreed to, “proudly serve again”. Troops to Teachers help service member’s transition into civilian life and into teaching careers, if that is their passion. They go through the same credentialing programs as any other teaching candidate, but offer leadership skills and worldly experiences, to their classrooms.

     “Teaching is the life of a non- commissioned officer”, says Fuller. He spent twenty-five years, teaching and training soldiers from all ‘walks of life’ using differentiated instruction. This included teaching soldiers discipline and learning discipline.  As a leader he had to address soldier’s individual needs, while teaching skills affectively. “Not teaching a skill properly could cost a soldier his life”, he admits.  Fuller administered assessments to ensure the tasks were clearly understood and prepared soldiers for their next step in life. He did so by giving clear objectives, teaching organizational skills, providing guidance and motivating them to learn.  He had the unique opportunity, at one time, to teach at the Non-Commissioned Officers Leadership Academy and he also taught  military science at (UCCS) University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. It was there his natural gifts in education and administration were combined into a desire which eventually let him to wanting to become an educator.


     After retirement, he felt his life had encompassed teaching and learning, so therefore he wanted to continue to help others reach the same higher levels. “Students must learn to make the correct choices, and be guided into choosing a valuable career would help them achieve their dreams and goals”, Fuller says, “making the right decisions and being properly prepared were keys to walking down the right path.” Fuller wanted to help students with their journey. He visited the local Troops to Teachers Office and that began his journey. Through hard work, he attained a Master’s Degree in Education.  “Troops to Teachers was beside me the whole way”, Fuller says, “acting as my career advisor, without them, the journey would have been deterred”. Fuller says, “I knew I had a team of individuals who supported my goals and guided me through the teacher certification process while supporting me financially to achieve that dream.  I learned to take advantage of all of the opportunities for education that the military offered.  I volunteered and shadowed teachers. This helped me to see the ‘life of a teacher’ and to know that this was my ultimate desire.”
     Working with the Hire in Advance Program, which was a sub-program of Troops to Teachers, he attained his teaching credentials and started work as a Special Education teacher at Helen Hunt Elementary School in Colorado Springs District 11.  After teaching for four years and receiving the ‘Teacher of the Year’ Award from Troops to Teachers, he enrolled in the principal licensure program at the University of Phoenix. Fuller felt being a Principal is where he could make the greatest impact in the education field.  He wanted to give back to his community and wanted to lead educators. He wanted to support visions that inspired teachers to know that through sheer determination they could accomplish great things. He received his administrator license and became the Assistant Principal at Wilson and Monroe Elementary. He worked at Jack Swigert Aerospace Academy and most recently was Dean of Students at Wasson High School before it was forced to close in May 2013.
This same year he was hired as the Principal at Global Village Academy in Colorado Springs. The school is a 100,000 square foot facility that operates in the old Irving Middle School building on Murray near Constitution. “I’ve shown that dreams can come true with hard work and perseverance”, Fuller maintains.
            As an educator, Fuller learned that not having enough resources, including finances, could affect the outcome of one’s aspirations. He started annual golf tournaments at local courses to raise money for schools. “Troops to Teachers was there for me financially, so I felt I had to be there for the community, financially. I like to see kids move forward in education and understand that some families need that extra support”, Fuller adds, “The Troops to Teachers program assisted me in attaining my goal through stipends, job searches, certification and providing Place Exam Study Halls. They were the support network that was always there to guide me into my desired civilian career path.  Through their support, I attained my teacher’s license as well as my Principals licensure”.
            Sherman Fuller has two children.  His son Kephern, graduated from George Mason University with a degree in Government. He attended college on a soccer scholarship.  Fuller’s daughter, Shermeka, graduated from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.  His wife, PJ, works as a teacher, also in School District 11, Colorado Springs and runs her own local business. His wife also did a complete career change. She worked in civil service for 19 years prior to teaching.  PJ has been teaching for thirteen years. When she began her journey, she participated in the Spouses to Teacher program, which was a sub-program of Troops to Teachers, and they guided her through the certification process as well.
    
Fuller states, “I cannot express my gratitude for the Troops to Teacher Program and to their staff.  Without them, we would have not accomplished what we have as a family.  As a Principal today at Global Village Academy Charter School in Colorado Springs, I continue the journey of moving students forward. I continue to lead teachers in supporting our greatest community resource, our children. My military experience prepared me for the education field.  My affiliation with Troops to Teacher grounded me in the art.  My life today as a Principal is showing me how to change the lives of kid.  Teaching is indeed an art. Education is the canvas where all things become real, and serving as a Principal is the tool I use to paint that vision of success. A vision that was instilled in me through the Troops to Teacher Program.  I am forever grateful for their tutorship and helping to mold me in what I’ve accomplished.” For more information on the Troops to Teachers program, visit www.troopstoteachers.net or to register for the program and get started on your next career to "proudly serve again", visit www.proudtoserveagain.com

Troops to Teachers Announces New Associate Regional Director of Native American Affairs

 

Troops to Teachers now has an Associate Regional Director of Native American Affairs. Colonel (Ret.) Joey Strickland, has been named to recruit, counsel and assist with job placement on as many as three hundred reservations across the United States. Strickland, who is American Indian of Choctaw-Hispanic descent, also served as Louisiana Director of Indian Affairs from 1996 to 2004. In May 1995, and was selected from 80 candidates to serve as Louisiana State Director of Troops to Teachers as a member of the Louisiana Governor’s personal staff.  Col. Strickland served as Director of the Louisiana State office of Troops to Teachers, from 1995 until 1998 where he was able to establish an alternative certification program. Col. Strickland became Director of the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs. Strickland most recently retired after five years as the head the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services after serving more than 10 years as the Deputy Secretary and Executive Director of the Louisiana Department of Veterans.
“I am very excited and happy to be back with Troops to Teachers. I have kept up with former Troops to Teachers Chief, Dr. John Gantz and Regional Director Colonel Joe Morgan, as well as the current TTT Chief, Mr. Bill McAleer,” says Strickland. “Joey Strickland will bring great leadership ability to an area that has been greatly underserved by our organization. His efforts will no doubt bring military veterans into the classrooms in ever increasing numbers,” says Colonel Morgan.
“Being of Native American heritage, it was always a goal of mine to help bring Troops to Teachers to Native American veterans and provide them the same opportunity in reservation schools. It is a known fact that after completion of their military service many Indian veterans return to their reservations. There is usually a shortage of non-Indian teachers on the reservations because of housing shortages and isolation. I see my role as the POC for Indian veterans desiring to be teachers through the Troops to Teachers Program. Presenting weekly on Reservations will give me the opportunity to educate potential candidates, principals, superintendents and Indian leadership about the benefits of hiring military veterans who will be wonderful role models within the Troops to Teachers program. My duties will also include educating national Indian organizations (NCAI, USET) on Troops to Teachers, as well as speaking to and about native colleges and universities who may desire to create alternative certification programs for those who wish to “proudly serve again.” My initial duties will focus primarily in the four corners of New Mexico, Utah, Arizona and Colorado, but will outreach to other states with any needed support, eventually branching north, west, and then to the east.” 

 ~Strickland

Troops to Teachers Tom Dorsey transitions easily from 24 year Military Career to Teacher

Troops to Teachers graduate and mentor, Tom Dorsey, doesn’t just “talk the talk”, he “walks the walk.” After 24 years of service in the U.S. Army and retiring at the rank of First Sergeant, E-8, Tom now “proudly serves again” as a JRTOC Instructor. He states, “I feel there are many values learned in the military that directly correspond to the teaching environment. Of primary importance is the caring of subordinates and the success of the mission. Likewise, you must care about your students and insure they accomplish the mission of getting good grades and graduating. All TTT participants have their own way of involving their military environment and relating it to the education experience, and contribute to the teaching our children, who are the future of our great country.”

After twenty years of experience in discipline, responsibility and structure, a military retiree can usually adjust to any employment situation. “I feel that military retirees can give back to the community through their talents and work ethic in the noble profession of teaching and understand that they are desperately needed to guide and influence the young people of our country. My following story exemplifies how I discovered my passion for teaching in the Army, which changed into a
life-long endeavor with Troops to Teachers after I retired. I would advise the potential participant that the country needs educated people and that they are in the best position to educate students. You can continue your service to the country as teachers.”

Teaching in the Military
States Dorsey, “I was selected to attend the Instructors Training Course (ITC). I taught my first classes at, of all places, a hand grenade range where one of the instructors had to go on sick call. I was taken from my usual job as ammunition point supervisor and told to teach concurrent classes of ten trainees each on how to hold and throw the hand grenade.  I found it to be genuinely rewarding teaching something they wanted to learn, I liked the feeling. I was forever rewarded with the self-confidence needed to choose that I wanted to be a teacher, no matter what the subject was, for the rest of my life.  I taught in the military, in formal classes, and served two tours as a Drill Sergeant where my love for teaching was drawn upon in every context. When I retired from the military, I can honestly say that I taught every day for six years, as well as on and off again for five more.”

Teaching in Civilian Life
“My greatest reward today is to see my students not only succeed in my classes, but to do well in other classes.  “I enrolled in the Troops to Teachers (TTT) program in 1998, and taught as a long term substitute science teacher and physical education teacher in two correctional settings. I held TTT in such high regard that I volunteered to mentor and promote the program at job fairs and at National Guard Armorie. I was also a special education teacher and JROTC Instructor at schools considered to be “at risk.” At the juvenile hall where I taught PE part time, I used the standard Army conditioning drills in a regimen that I used as a Drill Sergeant.” Troops to Teachers has really helped with the transition from a career military soldier to civilian teacher. Troops to Teachers is a Department of Defense program administered by the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support, DANTES.

Troops to Teachers Honors Four for Lifetime Achievement in Military and Civilian Life

The Troops to Teachers Hall of Fame was created to honor members of the educational and veterans support communities who have made significant contributions to assist veterans as they transition to the teaching profession.  2010 was the inaugural year for the award.  It is the intent of Troops to Teachers to induct professionals from the education and veterans communities into the Hall of Fame each year, as well as honor one Colorado Troops to Teacher Teacher of the Year.  Nominations for the award are accepted from Troops to Teachers state and regional directors.  Nominees are considered based on the level of support exhibited, through their professional activities, for military members who enter the teaching profession.
This year's ceremony was held at the Colorado Department of Education with honored guests Dr. Jami Goetz: CDE Executive Director Professional Services & Licensure, Colonel (Ret.) Joe Morgan.

Hall of Fame Inductees for 2013:

General (Ret) John Barry (Superintendent Aurora Public Schools, USAF)
Mr. Glenn Jones (Jones International, Ltd., Jones International University, U.S. Navy)
 Colonel (Ret) Joey Strickland (Arizona, U.S. Army)

The Mountain Pacific Troops to Teachers program began the Troops to Teachers Teacher of the Year Award in 2003 to recognize outstanding Troops to Teachers participants who have made significant contributions to their communities as public school teachers. To be eligible to receive the award individuals must be a registered Troops to Teachers participant currently teaching in a K-12 public school.

Colorado Troops to Teachers Teacher of the Year for 2013:

Lt. Colonel (Ret) Thomas Chandler

                                            Biographies:

General (Ret.) John Barry (Superintendent Aurora Public Schools, USAF) Hall of Fame Inductee
General John Barry became superintendent of Aurora Public Schools in 2006. Barry served for more than 30 years as a combat veteran, fighter pilot and a commander in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a “Two-Star” Major General. As executive director and board member of the 2003 Columbia Accident Investigation Team, Barry helped lead the independent inquiry of the tragic Columbia Space Shuttle accident.
Barry was an honor graduate from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1973 where he pursued a double major in Political Science and International Affairs. In 1980, he received his Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Oklahoma. He was a White House Fellow in 1985-1986 and he attended Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in 1993-1994. John Barry was recognized as one of the top ten “Tech Savvy Superintendents” in the Nation by eSchool News in 2008.  He was also recognized as the Business Person of the Year by the Aurora Chamber of Commerce in 2009 and the CIVITAN Aurora Citizen of the Year in 2010.  In 2011, he was selected as the Superintendent of the Year for Colorado.

Lt. Colonel (Ret.) Thomas Chandler (Highland HS, U.S. Marines) Colorado Troops to Teachers Teacher of the Year
Lt Colonel (Ret.) Chandler was commissioned in May 1991 following graduation from the United States Naval Academy.  Between 1995 and 1998, Chandler planned and led the first Marine Corps Combat Readiness Evaluation of an ANGLICO brigade platoon.  Chandler served as a Supporting Arms Liaison Team Officer during a company deployment to Norway for NATO exercise Arctic Warrior.  In October 1998, Chandler was reassigned to the staff of Commander, Amphibious Group One, headquartered on Naval Amphibious Base White Beach, Okinawa, where he served as the Supporting Arms Officer. In January 2003, now Major Chandler was mobilized to active duty and deployed with the 1st Marine Division for Operation Enduring Freedom, subsequently Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). In January, 2004, he was assigned as the Division Information Operations Coordinator, he deployed to Camp Blue Diamond, Ramadi, Iraq. In January 2006, Major Chandler joined the 24th Marines staff and was assigned to his current billet.  He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel on October 1, 2006.  Lt Col Chandler’s personal decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal, four Navy-Marine Corps Commendation Medals, and the Combat Action Ribbon. Mr. Chandler is now proudly serving again as a teacher at Highland High School in Ault, Colorado, where he is in his sixth year of teaching.  He received his Masters of Education from Colorado State University in 2008 through the Teacher Education and Masters (TEAM) program.  This year, Mr. Chandler is a participant in the Better Lesson Master Teacher Program.

Mr. Glenn Jones (Jones International, Ltd., Jones International University, U.S. Navy) Hall of Fame Inductee
Glenn R. Jones, branches cable television, digital technology, Internet technology, e-commerce, software development, education, entertainment, mobile communications, radio networks, author and advertising sales. In 1961, Jones began his career in cable television which over time, pioneered Jones Intercable, Inc. Two decades later, he created new technology businesses in the fields of compression, digital encryption and satellite receivers. In 1993, he founded Jones International University. In 1999, JIU became the first fully online university to receive accreditation from a nationally recognized regional accrediting agency, the Higher Learning Commission, a member of the North Central Association.

Colonel (Ret.) Joey Strickland (Arizona, U.S. Army) Hall of Fame Inductee
Colonel (Ret.) Joey Strickland who is American Indian of Choctaw-Hispanic descent, was appointed to head the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services in July 2008 after serving more than 10 years as the Deputy Secretary and Executive Director of the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs, responsible for overseeing five veterans’ nursing homes, one state veterans’ cemetery and the Department’s administrative and claims divisions.  He recently retired as Director of the Arizona Department of Veterans services after serving for 5 years. Strickland served as the Louisiana Director of Indian Affairs from 1996 to 2004, and the Governor’s Military Advisory Board. In May 1995, he was selected from 80 candidates to serve as Louisiana State Director of Troops to Teachers as a member of the Louisiana Governor’s personal staff.  Col. Strickland served as Director of the Louisiana State office of Troops to Teachers, and was able to convince the Louisiana Legislature to establish an alternative certification program. Selected by Mr.  John Gantz, Past National Troops to Teachers Director, in 1997, to accompany him to Europe to brief Commanders and Troops on the viability of the program. At the national level, Col. Strickland has served as chairman of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee for Minority Veterans and is a past president of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs. In 2007, Col. Strickland was presented with the “Iron Mike” award by NASDVA in Washington D.C., which is presented to men and women who have demonstrated great leadership in service to our nation’s veterans. In March of 2012, Col. Strickland, was appointed by VA Secretary Shinseki; to the National Committee for Homeless Veterans, where he still serves.  In May of 2012, Col. Strickland was one of eleven veterans nationwide selected by the White House as a, “Champion of Change”, for his work with the veterans community.