By Mark Squibb/June 9, 2022
Staff and students at Baltimore School know that teacher Jacinta McGrath impacts those around her on a daily basis — and now she has an award to prove it.
McGrath was awarded the Loran Scholars Foundation’s Teachers Building Leaders Award during a special ceremony held at the school on Friday, June 3.
She was nominated by former student Liam O'Brien, himself a 2018 Rebanks Family Loran
Scholar.
“We never go into this profession for the recognition, but I was certainly honoured,” said McGrath. “I was very thankful to Liam to take the time out of his schedule, as he’s getting ready for convocation. I was very thankful to Liam for nominating me and thinking of me.”
McGrath herself did not know she would be receiving the award until the actual presentation.
“Liam had said that he was coming here for a presentation about Loran, and we’ve actually had him here at the school before talking to the kids about what the Loran Foundation is all about, and how to apply to it, so I was originally thinking, ‘Okay, he’s going to do a 10 minute presentation on Loran,’ but then he gets up and says, ‘I’m not really here to talk about the actual scholarship,’” said McGrath.
McGrath taught O’Brien through Grades 7 to 12, teaching classes such as science, biology, Physed, and healthy living.
“This story is really about Liam, and all of the students who have gone through Baltimore School, and all the schools I’ve taught at, who have just been exceptional,” said McGrath. “I really feel that I’ve had the privilege of teaching some of the best students who have gone out into our province, and I also feel that I’ve taught with the best staff.”
McGrath said she had a number of teachers in her school days who had a positive impact on her.
“I had exceptional teachers when I went through school,” said McGrath. “I would definitely say that I had teachers who had a big impact on my life. So, when it came time for me to decide what I would like to do with my life, that came to me very easy. And I was lucky in that regard, because I know some people struggle deciding.”
Her brothers and sisters thought likewise — four of her five siblings are also teachers.
McGrath added that a quote she heard while working in Trepassey, which goes, “The children in your classrooms are much more important than the subject matter you will ever teach,” sums up a teacher’s duty.
“The subject matter, obviously, is important, but it’s secondary to the child’s wellbeing, to the child’s feeling when they walk into the school, and to the child’s overall schooling experience when you make those human connections, and you make school feel like a family and feel like home,” said McGrath.
The award recognises primary and secondary school teachers who provide early inspiration, guidance, and growth opportunities for students. A teacher must be nominated by a former student who has become a Loran Scholar, such as O’Brien.
