PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: info@armenianprelacy.org
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

September 26, 2005

ANEC EDUCATIONAL SEMINAR IN NEW JERSEY
PROVIDES EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF TEACHERS
by Nayiri Balanian

NEW YORK, NY-“She is our community’s answer to Mayr Hayastan in the
manner with which she has nurtured the growth and education of our younger
generation at such an essential time in their lives when language is being
lost and traditions often fall by the wayside in what’s become society’s
melting pot. Teaching is one thing. Implementing is another. Sossy’s
annual hantess celebrations bring out the best in children. She’s not only
taught her students song, dance and recitation, she’s sewn their costumes,
given them poise, stage presence and personality.”
Those were some of the words that Tom Vartabedian wrote when asked about
ANEC’s Principal-of-the-Year, Mrs. Sossy Jeknavorian. Mrs. Jeknavorian is
principal of the St. Gregory School, North Andover, Massachusetts. She was
honored during the Armenian National Education Committee’s National
Educators’ Seminar, which was dedicated to the creation of the Armenian
Alphabet and the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The Seminar
took place on Saturday, August 27, 2005, at Sts. Vartanantz Armenian Church
in Ridgefield, New Jersey.
Mrs. Nayiri Balanian, chairperson of ANEC, introduced and thanked the
ANEC members who were present: Mrs. Sossy Jeknavorian, Mrs. Silva
Kouyoumjian, Mrs. Knar Apkarian and Dr. Asbed Vassilian. She welcomed all
the teachers, principals and board members from the seven schools that were
represented. She emphasized the importance of Armenian teachers. She noted
that Armenians have a beautiful saying, God Became Human, So that a Humans
can become God-like. “This was true for St. Mesrob, an ordinary priest,
born in the village of Hatzyegatz, who through his work became a Saint.
Armenian teachers are the direct followers of St. Mesrob. They have the most
difficult and responsible task of preparing our next generations, to become
good human beings and excellent Armenians.” Mrs. Balanian went on to explain
the necessity for teachers to improve themselves, by reading books,
attending seminars and by keeping in step with modern technology.

Keynote Speaker
The keynote speaker, Dr. Mary Shamshoian- Olson, the current director of
Instruction and School Improvement at the Warren Township High School in
Gurnee, IL, is a multitalented educator with diverse affiliations in civic
and professional organizations. An author, teacher, principal, panelist,
speaker, workshop leader, the Loyola University graduate with a doctorate in
Curriculum and Instruction, is versed in teaching methods and assessment.
Dr. Olson also holds a Master of Science degree in the same discipline with
an emphasis on secondary mathematics education as well as post-graduate work
in educational administration from the University of Wisconsin and Marquette
University.
In addition to being a consultant to the Armenian Religious Education
Council, a board member of the Racine Marzbed School, she also is the
chairperson of ANEC’s Curriculum Committee.
Her presentation focused on “Teaching Armenian as a Second Language.”
She started by separating the audience into groups and asking questions. The
purpose of the project was to develop a curriculum for one-day a week
Armenian schools for students whose first language is not Armenian. Dr.
Olson explained that generally speaking, students in this program range from
ages 5-15. It cannot be assumed that there is an Armenian speaker in the
home, regardless of the level of fluency. Students who attend Armenian
School from age 5 through 15, will have had approximately 500 hours of
instruction. This assessment is based on instruction for two hours per
week, for twenty-five weeks each year. This is comparable to a four-year
high school course in a foreign language as structured in most American
public schools.
Dr. Olson said that given these parameters, it was decided to recommend
the development of a curriculum kit. Given the number of hours, 250 lesson
bundles must be developed in order to have a complete course. In order to
begin the actual writing of the lesson bundles, a scope and sequence has to
be developed. The organization of this scope and sequence has to be
topical, with vocabulary and grammar lessons being driven by the topics.
Dr. Olson’s presentation was described by attendees as interesting,
educational and very motivating. It gave the teachers a good idea of what to
expect from the new ANEC curriculum that is currently being developed.
The second speaker of the day was Mrs. Nayiri Balanian, who spoke about
“How to Teach the Armenian Genocide to Students.”
She started saying, “According to the historian Agathangelos in 301,
St. Gregory baptized half a million Armenians, members of the royal family
and the army, as well as four million people, so there were four and a half
million Armenians in 301, and the world population was 190 million. Today
world population is 6.5 billion and Armenians are 7-9 million. If we
multiplied like other nations, we should have been around 200 million. This
raises a question, “Why are we so few?”
She spoke about how the term “Genocide” was coined in1944 by a lawyer
named Raphael Lemkin. The Greek geno means “race” or “tribe” together with
the Latin derivative cide means “killing.” Genocide has come to mean
deliberate destruction or murder of a particular group of people. She
emphasized the importance of teaching the students to be the pursuers of
justice for the Armenian people. She said students should be encouraged to
become active in all aspects of life, including the Armenian American
community, and American society by taking part in the American government
and political system and serving in the United States Armed Forces.
Each school was given the opportunity to introduce itself and speak
about its achievements and concerns. This exchange resulted in a good
learning experience for all of the schools. At the conclusion of the
seminar each school was given books and a new map of Armenia and each
teacher was given a folder with educational materials.
Forthcoming ANEC activities include a School Festival on November 19,
2005, dedicated to the 1600th anniversary of the creation of the Armenian
alphabet, and to the Armenian Genocide Commemoration. In March 2006, ANEC
will host another popular Armenian Jeopardy tournament.
ANEC is jointly sponsored by the Eastern Prelacy and the Armenian Relief
Society, Eastern Region.