Category: News

Coming from a long line of educators, Patricia Bergstrom always knew that she wanted to continue her family legacy and be an educator. Patricia is a Hilliard graduate and has fond memories of her teachers while growing up in the Hilliard City Schools district. “School was so important to me and I felt cared about at school, and because of my amazing teachers that cared so much, I wanted to be that person for my students,” Patricia stated. 

Patricia is a Freshman math teacher at Hilliard Bradley and loves to follow-up on her students throughout their high school careers. Just like her experiences going to school, Patricia wants to not only be there for her students educationally but personally as well. “Knowing that kids have a lot going on outside of school, I want to be there for them as an inspiration to learning and that doesn’t have to be just math. It can be overcoming obstacles they are going through outside of my classroom.” It’s important to Patricia that she teaches math and also helps her students make the most out of their time at school, become problem solvers outside of the classroom, and do what they love. 

Thanks to her early morning workouts, Patricia brings never-ending positive energy and excitement to her classroom. Searching for a selfcare outlet, she stumbled upon OrangeTheory and fell in love with their workouts and the community. These early morning classes get her energy flowing before she starts teaching. She noticed that she was bringing more energy to the classroom and had an increased positive mindset to situations after she started consecutively working out. “I put in a lot of energy and focus on my students thanks to the workouts I do in the mornings.” 

The one debatable vice Patricia has is her “procrastination tool”, baking. We’ve heard from Bradley peers however that her treats are nothing less than amazing. So, no complaints there. Takeaways from time with Patricia are to enjoy each and every moment, do what you love, be passionate, and baking can be a tool for procrastination but more importantly compassion. 

5th graders over at Darby Creek brought the study of sound to life. As the classes finish learning about sound waves, they put their knowledge to use by creating a working speaker. Thanks to our partnership with The Ohio State Electrical & Computer Engineering Program, our students got to participate in this awesome hands-on learning experience.

Due to the contributions of time and money by many, Weaver, Heritage, and Memorial Middle Schools now have AR (Augmented Reality) sandboxes. These sandboxes will be used to teach land features and topographic mapping. Special thanks to HEF and Tom Hetterscheidt who supplied the technology and skills to make these sandboxes functional. 

Click Here to watch a video of the AR Sandboxes in use!

Brittany Sheedy has taught in Hilliard City Schools for 7 years, and, after teaching in multiple grade levels, she found that second grade was her sweet spot. Brittany is renowned at Horizon for checking in on others and genuinely caring about them. “I find that quick check-ins go a long way,” she says.

After giving birth to her daughter, many coworkers and friends checked in on her to see how she was doing, and this made her feel seen and cared for. After realizing how far these little inquiries go, she decided she would make a conscious effort to continue checking in with others.

Every morning before school, Brittany exercises so that when she gets off work, she can relax and have more time to herself. She particularly enjoys Peloton workouts because it is an intense, hard workout. She likes starting her day with these as it energizes her for the day ahead. She says, “Working out puts me in a better mood to start the day.”  Upon completion of work, Brittany cares for her now two-year-old daughter whom she loves to see grow and learn. Brittany said that having a child was the best thing ever to happen to her and that her daughter has positively shaped the way she teaches. She now has more empathy and understanding of her students and their families.

Brittany often reflects on her days in the classroom and thinks how she can create a bright, safe environment in which her students can grow, learn, and feel loved with no judgement. Part of how she can do this is by frequently practicing positivity. Positivity is engrained within her, so she can carry that with her into her classroom for her students. She wants her daughter to be able to experience all of this in her schooling, so she strives to create that same environment for other people’s beloved children.

Juggling being not only a full-time teacher, but also a new full-time mother is undoubtedly very challenging, but Brittany is doing it very well. We appreciate the hard work and extra miles Brittany goes for Hilliard.