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Contact: Jan Fiderio at 603.283.2107

December 5, 2011 for Immediate Release

AUNE Education Alumni ‘Book Group’ Going Strong for Twelve Years

These teachers encourage and support each other

(Keene, NH) --They call themselves the “book group,” but that’s a misnomer. This group of alumni from the elementary teacher certification program at Antioch University New England (AUNE) gets together to talk over what goes on in their classrooms, hash out problems and offer each other advice and empathy.

“We call it ‘book group,’ but we never read a book,” said Russell Williams, a fifth-grade teacher in Brattleboro’s Green Street School. “It’s a support group in a profession that’s really hard and takes work. For us it was survival. As new teachers, who do you have to chat with, on the outside? Another teacher who can help you process the day and say, ‘Oh my gosh, that happened to me, too.”

Twelve years after it first met, the group is going strong, meeting monthly in the Brattleboro, Vermont, area. Williams said the group got together once a week at first. “Sometimes I would leave at midnight because it felt so good to be able to state your inadequacies and have people say, “Oh, me too,’ and someone else would say ‘This worked fine for me.’”

The nucleus of the group was a class taught by Heidi Watts, core faculty member in AUNE’s Department of Education and now professor emerita. Their first meeting was intended to talk about a book by psychologist Jerome Kagan. “It was a way for that class to get together with a potluck,” LaBrusciano said. “It led to having a potluck to discuss what happened, the victories they had and the challenges they had, dealing with administration or trying to problem solve. It became an opportunity not only to socialize but to help solve problems and get some input from others.”

The group invited LaBrusciano to join, but he doesn’t lead the group. In fact, there is no leader. “Part of the reason book group works is because there is a really good listener, and that’s Ron. He is a very good listener,” Williams said.

And it keeps LaBrusciano abreast of what’s going on in the field. “For me, I’m in the classroom a lot but I don’t have the opportunity sometimes to talk with teachers about what challenges they have,” he said. Teachers everywhere should advocate for such groups in their school systems, he said. “It’s such a valuable thing for teachers.”

Two members of the original group are still with it—Williams is one of them. They are all elementary school teachers, most of them in southern Vermont, and they meet in each others’ homes or classrooms.

The format of the AUNE professional seminar also gave the group a successful start, Williams said. “For people from AUNE, it’s so easy to have a common language; we all have the idea that the lesson should be integrated and connective to the students’ lives.”

About Antioch University New England (AUNE)
Antioch University New England offers highly respected doctoral, master’s and certificate programs in education, environmental studies, management and psychology. Located in Keene, New Hampshire, this unique institution serves approximately one thousand students each year. Our graduates have gone on to be leaders of positive change, working toward a more just and sustainable society. Founded in 1964, Antioch University New England is the oldest of Antioch University’s graduate campuses. Learn more at: www.antiochne.edu

About Antioch University
Antioch University serves adult students around the world and across the country, online and at its five campuses in four states. Each campus offers degree programs that meet—and often anticipate—the pressing needs of its region and the wider world. The University is also home to the landmark PhD in Leadership and Change; Antioch Education Abroad, an exceptional opportunity of immersive service and study programs; and WYSO, a leading public radio affiliate and an essential source of global news and opinion.

Antioch University is a nonprofit private 501(c) (3) organization and member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. For more information, www.antioch.edu.

Last Updated: 12/29/11