1973
It’s spring, or so they say…
Belated kudos are due to chemistry teacher Thomas Shiland and his wife, Maureen, a
Spanish teacher, both at Saratoga Springs High School, who in late 2005 were among 107 New
York State teachers honored by the New York State United Teachers for earning national
accreditation through the National Board for Professional Teaching. The award is considered to
be the “gold standard” of teaching. The Shilands each devoted between 200 and 300 hours
during a nearly one year period to an intensive process that involved portfolios, student work
samples, videos, tests, and analyses of their teaching skills and students’ learning styles. The
rigorous process goes beyond New York State’s certification requirements, which are
considered the toughest in the nation. In addition to teaching at Saratoga Springs for over 20
years, at the time he attained national certification, Thomas was serving as president of the
Science Teachers Association of New York State, which has approximately 3,000 members.
Howard Mirowitz has joined the ranks of the recently retired after working for thirty years
in high-tech business development and venture capital but he continues to serve on corporate
boards and does occasional consulting for institutional investors. He is a member of the
Association of Computing Machinery and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers.
His activity list embraces membership in Congregation B’nai Israel in Tustin, California, where
he has served on the board of directors and chaired the adult education program; membership
in the Bureau of Jewish Education in Orange County for which he currently serves as
president; special advisor to the Illumination Foundation, a grassroots organization whose
mission is to improve the lives of the homeless; treasurer of the Mental Health Association of
Orange County; and an appointment to the Measure M taxpayer oversight committee of the
Orange County Transportation Authority. In 2006-2007 Howard was foreman pro tempore of
the Orange County grand jury. He also previously served as co-chair of the Newport-Mesa
Unified School District Measure A citizen oversight committee, representing the local high
school and five elementary schools in the attendance area
In 1974 Jeffrey Nintzel started Jeffrey Nintzel Photography in Grantham, New
Hampshire, where he specializes in photo portraits. If you look closely at photo credits for
museums and galleries in New England you will see his name. The College has commissioned
him to take photographs of various pieces of artwork, including many pieces displayed at the
Hood Museum of Art.
Looking forward to seeing many of you very soon.
Val Armento, 227 Sylvan Ave., San Mateo, CA 94403
val.armento@alum.dartmouth.org