Statement of Angela Scavone

As a high school student, AP Psychology opened my eyes to the world of psychology. After high school, I attended Marquette University and majored in secondary education and history with a broadfield social science minor emphasizing in psychology. Following graduation, I accepted a teaching position at Oconomowoc High School, where I have taught introductory psychology and AP Psychology for the past 7 years. During this time, I have grown these programs and improved pass rates for my AP students. This upcoming school year marks an exciting new journey as I will run the first sections of our new developmental psychology class, which I created. In addition to growing and improving our psychology courses, I work with a team of student leaders to prioritize students’ mental health through events like our school’s annual “Feel the Love February” week, which raises mental health awareness and fundraises for mental health-related organizations, such as NAMI. Additionally, I have made connections with a variety of professionals in the psychology community and organized annual guest speakers from behavioral health organizations and local universities.

My commitment to psychology is evident beyond my work in the classroom. Whether it be informally consuming psychology-related books and documentaries in my free time or formally attending psychology-related professional development events, psychology is my life. TOPSS has granted me the opportunity to attend several events, such as the APA Pre-Convention Workshop for High School Teachers, STP Annual Conference on Teaching, and Oregon State University’s High School Psychology Teacher Workshop. Additionally, I have attended the AP Psychology reading for the last 4 years. These professional experiences have led me to my most recent pursuit in working with a team of local teachers to revive the Milwaukee Area Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools organization (MATOPSS), which had disbanded after Covid and its original leader retired. I have enjoyed expanding and connecting the psychology community in Wisconsin through MATOPSS. Becoming a TOPSS member-at-large would be a great opportunity to continue this work on a larger scale. As a part of the MATOPSS leadership team, I have a good sense of what resources teachers are looking for and can relay this to TOPSS leadership. I believe I would provide a needed perspective for newer teachers. My success so far as a teacher has been influenced by the opportunities that APA/TOPSS has provided me and the network I’ve formed, but I know not everyone is aware of these opportunities. One of my goals is to expand TOPSS’s scope so newer teachers can benefit from these resources like I have. Examples include engaging with teachers via social media and/or existing social studies teacher networks like NCSS, WCSS, etc., which can help catch some of the people who might not be aware of TOPSS.

To conclude, I believe my passion for psychology, continual learning, networking, and leadership set me up to be a great member of the TOPSS team. Since entering into the world of psychology, I have traveled to new places, made lifelong friends, and grown as a learner and educator in a variety of ways. My journey in psychology has already brought me on many adventures and opened so many doors, and I cannot wait to see what is possible with this opportunity to be part of the TOPSS team.