Friday provided an unofficial first day of school for Bulloch County’s newest educators.
First-year teachers and transfers from other districts met at Statesboro’s Board of Education offices for an all day orientation into the county’s local school system.
Bulloch County Schools’ Human Resources Department hosted the annual event for a fifth time, welcoming new teachers and providing a synopsis of what is expected from educators once the school year begins.
“The orientation is a chance for all of our new hires to come in, and receive brief overviews and knowledge of what is going on within the district,” said Kevin Judy, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources.  “We just want to help them get a good introduction to their new jobs.”
In the cafeteria at William James Educational Complex, the 54 teachers met from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to review curriculum standards and be presented speeches about diversity, classroom teaching strategies and more.
“We are just trying to better prepare them for stepping into their new situations,” said Judy. “We have principles come in and do presentations on classroom management and inform teachers about the various events we have going on throughout the year.”
“This orientation sets the tone for all the new employees and informs them of our expectations,” said Phillip Tremble, Director of Human Resources, who developed and oversees the project. “It is an eight hour program and a ton of information is being disseminated to employees.”
The day-long event allows teachers a chance to learn about employment benefits associated with the job, review various system-wide policies and meet a bevy of new co-workers.
“A major benefit is: the teachers get to meet other new employees here,” said Judy. “They can call upon them throughout the year if they ever have a question. Anytime someone is new to something it can be a little uneasy. This can help their transition be as smooth as possible.”
“You get to meet other teachers who are in the same boat as you, which always helps,” said Brooks Cosgrove, who recently moved to Brooklet from Bristol, Tennessee to be with family – Cosgrove will teach science at Southeast Bulloch High School. “[The orientation] really aids in getting set up as a teacher. It has been very helpful.”
The instructional affair is not all business, according to Tremble.
“To avoid people being bored, we have some exciting games going on,” he said.
Local vendors attended the event, offering assistance – banking services, teaching supplies, etc. – and providing items for door prizes.
“[Orientation] has been wonderful,” said Sarah Lindner, a first-year instructor who will teach Pre-K at Julia P. Bryant – Linder has worked as a substitute teacher for Bulloch schools and coordinator for the Parks and Recreation Department. “This has been one of the best training experiences I have had in a long time.”
“The program has been very interesting and informational,” she said. “It is very nice to be refreshed about some of the key points before starting the year.”
The teachers will not have to wait long for a chance to implement to newly acquired knowledge.
A week of pre-planning will begin in each school Tuesday, July 26, said Judy.
Students are set to resume classes August 1.

Jeff Harrison can be reached at 912-489-9454