Anita R. Case
Anita Case was born and raised in Branford, CT, along with her brother, Mark, and sister, Sharon Forte, to Gilda and Alexander Robertson. The Robertson family has a long history in the Stony Creek sector of Branford spanning well over a century and a half. Anita remains proud to call this beautiful community her home
Anita can’t remember a time when she wasn’t drawing and passionate about creating her own art. At Branford High School, under the guidance of art teacher, Luanne Eminger, Anita filled her course work with art classes. As a senior, she earned an academic scholarship to attend the University of New Haven during the second half of her senior year of high school. After graduating high school, Anita attended Southern Connecticut State University, receiving her Bachelor of Science in art education and later obtained her Master of Science and 6th Year in Elementary Education.
Anita followed her dream of teaching art in the Branford School System, back at a time when there were six elementary schools open. Her rotating schedule brought her to each of the elementary schools across the week, and on some days traveling to two schools. The job required prepping in closets and traveling with art supplies in the trunk of her car. Yet, this was the job of creating with children that Anita found most rewarding and loved.
Following ten years of teaching art, Anita’s career took a change. With her Master’s in Education she started teaching in the elementary classrooms of Mary T. Murphy School. Over the next twenty-eight years as an elementary education teacher, Anita taught 4th grade, 1st grade and 2nd grade, while always incorporating her creative talents to deliver the curriculum. As pedagogies fluctuated through Anita’s long career, she embraced each practice and its implementation to most greatly benefit her students. Anita attended many training workshops including, but not limited to; Responsive Classroom, Lucy Calkins Reading and Writing Workshops and Science Inquiry.
Anita’s commitment to education always included the well-being of the whole child, their parents and the community in which they grew up.
At Mary T. Murphy School, Anita worked alongside her staff to fundraise for the Community Dining Room, Cosgrove’s Animal Shelter, Branford Counseling Center’s Secret Santa Program and the building of a well in Uganda for school children, to name a few worthy organizations. She led her school to think environmentally and recognize the footprint we leave for the future generations.
The school’s PTA benefited from countless hours of Anita’s time, outside of the school day, to support their functions and thereby the students at Mary T. Murphy School.
Anita is most proud of her family, her husband John, and their children, Alexander and Alyssa. John, a physical education teacher at Walsh Intermediate School, shares Anita’s passion for teaching and faithfully remains Anita’s biggest champion of her thirty-eight-year career in education.
Anita can’t remember a time when she wasn’t drawing and passionate about creating her own art. At Branford High School, under the guidance of art teacher, Luanne Eminger, Anita filled her course work with art classes. As a senior, she earned an academic scholarship to attend the University of New Haven during the second half of her senior year of high school. After graduating high school, Anita attended Southern Connecticut State University, receiving her Bachelor of Science in art education and later obtained her Master of Science and 6th Year in Elementary Education.
Anita followed her dream of teaching art in the Branford School System, back at a time when there were six elementary schools open. Her rotating schedule brought her to each of the elementary schools across the week, and on some days traveling to two schools. The job required prepping in closets and traveling with art supplies in the trunk of her car. Yet, this was the job of creating with children that Anita found most rewarding and loved.
Following ten years of teaching art, Anita’s career took a change. With her Master’s in Education she started teaching in the elementary classrooms of Mary T. Murphy School. Over the next twenty-eight years as an elementary education teacher, Anita taught 4th grade, 1st grade and 2nd grade, while always incorporating her creative talents to deliver the curriculum. As pedagogies fluctuated through Anita’s long career, she embraced each practice and its implementation to most greatly benefit her students. Anita attended many training workshops including, but not limited to; Responsive Classroom, Lucy Calkins Reading and Writing Workshops and Science Inquiry.
Anita’s commitment to education always included the well-being of the whole child, their parents and the community in which they grew up.
At Mary T. Murphy School, Anita worked alongside her staff to fundraise for the Community Dining Room, Cosgrove’s Animal Shelter, Branford Counseling Center’s Secret Santa Program and the building of a well in Uganda for school children, to name a few worthy organizations. She led her school to think environmentally and recognize the footprint we leave for the future generations.
The school’s PTA benefited from countless hours of Anita’s time, outside of the school day, to support their functions and thereby the students at Mary T. Murphy School.
Anita is most proud of her family, her husband John, and their children, Alexander and Alyssa. John, a physical education teacher at Walsh Intermediate School, shares Anita’s passion for teaching and faithfully remains Anita’s biggest champion of her thirty-eight-year career in education.
Letters of Nomination
Another word for Anita Case is dedication. She has been the driving force behind learning experiences for not only her students, but her colleagues. For example, when I was new to the district, she was one of the first teachers to help me understand teaching day-to-day, and reach beyond the theoretical to become a functioning teacher. She offered advice as well, as she led me to search for the real world reasons behind that teaching. She opened my eyes to the power of science and social studies lessons that often take a second seat at our level. Anita encouraged me to dive deeper into my teaching and not just cover a lot of information. She attends summer courses given by the Energize CT Center to increase her knowledge on recycling, energy, and matter. Then shares that knowledge with her grade-level teachers. For example, she created lessons and projects around the topic of community. Her students take that knowledge and create plays, interactive projects and creative books. She would set up field trips to the Energize CT Center for students to get a hands-on understanding of how our community is impacted by energy. Her students sing songs, read books, investigate their own lives, all while using art to display their final project. They created a 3-D display of the communities along with well-researched, student written books on the topics. Anita understands that engagement is doing. She started her teaching career as an art teacher as Murphy (8 years) and this knowledge and skill base is present in many things she does. These artistic skills are present in many forms. She creates interactive and engaging anchor charts, welcoming bulletin boards, and inviting school decorations. Students create costumes for their Thanksgiving play. They use paint and leaves to discover the life cycle of plants, she uses balloons and soap to investigate the properties of matter. Her instruction has allowed her students to be active participants in their learning. They enjoy science and thrive in that engaging environment. She taught in many grade levels while teaching at Murphy- fourth, first, and second. Her knowledge of the vertical content is seen and allows her students the best opportunities for growth. She spends countless hours planning (before and after school, weekends, vacations) to give her students quality lessons and materials. Her expertise in reading and what is grade-level appropriate helps develop grade-wide material and goals. Anita’s years of experience makes her a teacher mentor. She questions why assessments or particular lessons are given if she feels they aren’t the best for her students. For instance, during many grade level meetings, she has brought to our attention that a standard isn’t being met by a particular task or being measured by an assessment. She then offers her materials (whether created or found) that she feels will help students make that growth. I, in particular, have used her experience to help develop my own class expectations. Having very little experience in second grade when I started, she helped me set goals for myself and my students. A great example of this is when she offered advice on what my small group instruction for reading should be, including book choice, what work they should be held accountable for, and how to schedule reading conferences. Her kindness is contagious. She started a school-wide morale builder in which teachers who don’t usually interact were encouraged to finally take the time to talk to each other. She will leave materials she knows each teacher will need or like. She often bakes and brings in food to boost the grade-level spirit. She rarely takes a day to herself and is always planning ahead. She has a gentle and loving classroom presence. Her voice is calm and her personality is one of kindness. Her teaching is student-driven. Her professional development is growth driven. Her advice is most meaningful and helpful. Anita’s 38 years of experience have been dedicated to this fortunate district. We are the better for having this talented, generous and, yes, dedicated woman as one of our finest teachers. I therefore, am honored to, nominate her for the Branford’s Education Hall of Fame.
I would like to nominate Anita Case, a 38 year veteran teacher in the Branford School System, for the Branford Education Hall of Fame. I have worked with Anita as a literacy aide and as a Special Education Paraprofessional at Mary T. Murphy School for more than 20 years. My first assignment as a Special Ed Para was in Anita’s class.
Anita is one of the most calm and caring teachers I have had the privilege to work with.
Her energy is evident to anyone who steps into her classroom. She draws her students in with a soft spoken voice that draws students in to react and interact with her as a teacher. When you walk into her 2nd grade room, you need only to look at the walls to see the creative atmosphere she has brought to her students and classroom. Drawing on her years as an art teacher, there are self portraits of the children, poems, art activities that corresponded to a math lesson or drawings that the children created from a book they were reading in their book clubs.
Her eagerness to have her children participate in yearly Veteran’s Day assemblies with a poem as well as cards they have made have brought many a smile and tear to our thankful guest Veterans.
In the years I have supported students in Anita’s room, I can say I spent a good part of it sitting on the rug. Anita circles her class up on the rug throughout the day from morning meeting, interactive science experiments, read aloud and math activities. This closeness between classmates and teacher brings her students close and focused on learning, as well as the children feeling like a classroom family.
Anita is a dedicated teacher that never likes to be away from her class. Whether at a grade level meeting, PPT, personal illness or bike mishap, she goes above and beyond and comes in to the building to make sure her sub plans are ready to go and in order for the substitute that will take her place for the day.
I have enjoyed the many opportunities I have had to learn from Anita and support her students and her students have been blessed to have a teacher that makes learning fun, is caring and compassionate and challenges her students to reach for the stars.
For these reasons and many more, please accept my nomination of Anita Case for the Branford Education Hall of Fame.
Anita is one of the most calm and caring teachers I have had the privilege to work with.
Her energy is evident to anyone who steps into her classroom. She draws her students in with a soft spoken voice that draws students in to react and interact with her as a teacher. When you walk into her 2nd grade room, you need only to look at the walls to see the creative atmosphere she has brought to her students and classroom. Drawing on her years as an art teacher, there are self portraits of the children, poems, art activities that corresponded to a math lesson or drawings that the children created from a book they were reading in their book clubs.
Her eagerness to have her children participate in yearly Veteran’s Day assemblies with a poem as well as cards they have made have brought many a smile and tear to our thankful guest Veterans.
In the years I have supported students in Anita’s room, I can say I spent a good part of it sitting on the rug. Anita circles her class up on the rug throughout the day from morning meeting, interactive science experiments, read aloud and math activities. This closeness between classmates and teacher brings her students close and focused on learning, as well as the children feeling like a classroom family.
Anita is a dedicated teacher that never likes to be away from her class. Whether at a grade level meeting, PPT, personal illness or bike mishap, she goes above and beyond and comes in to the building to make sure her sub plans are ready to go and in order for the substitute that will take her place for the day.
I have enjoyed the many opportunities I have had to learn from Anita and support her students and her students have been blessed to have a teacher that makes learning fun, is caring and compassionate and challenges her students to reach for the stars.
For these reasons and many more, please accept my nomination of Anita Case for the Branford Education Hall of Fame.