Educator of the Year
As a Social Studies and English Language Arts teacher of first, fourth and fifth graders, Fran Margolin is known for inspiring her students through both the real-world applications of her lessons as well as her passion for giving back to the community. She has been a faculty member at Rabbi Arthur Schneier Park East Day School for ten years and her career as an educator in both public and private schools spans more than two decades.
She loves that Park East is a close-knit school community, and enjoys the opportunity to build relationships with students over the years and see them grow. Teaching fourth graders about New York’s history and development is a curriculum highlight; she encourages them to explore New York state and establish a new appreciation for where they live.
For Fran, service to others is a core value. Growing up, she was inspired by her mother’s volunteer work at her Yeshiva and a variety of community organizations. Fran has visited Holocaust survivors and the elderly, volunteered with a variety of Jewish organizations and the Red Cross, and emphasizes the importance of giving back with her own children as well as her students. She was recently inspired to organize a fundraising initiative for her class in support of Upper East Side Hatzolah. Her students enjoyed a visit with a Hatzolah volunteer to illustrate the impact of their efforts, which were followed by a thank-you-letter writing campaign to the organization.
Fran holds a B.A. in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland and an M.A. in Gifted and Talented Education from C. W. Post College. She is the proud parent of three sons and a daughter-in-law. All three of her sons attended Jewish Day Schools and two became b’nai mitzvah in Israel. She lives on the Upper East Side with her family and looks forward to their weekly Shabbat dinners.
We look forward to honoring her at our 132nd Anniversary Dinner Dance on June 8!