About

Catherine E. Gehman, M. Ed, National Writing Project Fellow

Background

Born in Huntington, Long Island, I grew up in a home bursting with fun and activity. Our brown cedar-shingled house with white shutters was shaded by tall oaks and maple trees of Shady Lane.  I was blessed with parents who provided opportunities for me to explore and enjoy the world around me. I will always cherish the childhood memories I have of constant activity and fun with three siblings and neighborhood friends.  Especially dear to me were the summers of my childhood. They were filled with adventure from family camping trips to Montauk Point, visiting cousins at Orient Point, and my dad driving us north to summer camp in the Adirondack Mountains.  I cannot recall boredom when I think of those days, maybe it was because there were always neighbors to play games of Parcheesi or Monopoly on a rainy day or ride our bikes to Centerport Beach on a blistery hot day.  I was never far from the sea or the sound in those days, and it's as if the saltwater and rocky beaches of the island's north shore became a part of me - a part of me that I will always treasure.

In 1980 I graduated from Harborfields High School and soon traded the saltwater for grandeur fields of corn when I moved to Ohio to earn a degree in Elementary Education in 1985 at Cedarville College near Dayton, Ohio.

Following graduation and a student teaching experience at the Harold Schnell School in Dayton, Ohio, an all-year-round school,  I had the privilege to teach 6th grade in my hometown of Huntington.  I didn’t leave the cornfields behind for long, though, because I married a farmer from Macungie, PA where I would eventually settle and grow a family of my own. 

I have been teaching for more than 25 years and have worked with a wide variety of students, including students with difficulities and English learners, across the upper-elementary and middle grades, and in schools in New York, Iowa, and Pennsylvania.  I hold a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Cedarville College in Ohio and a master’s degree in education from  Cedar Crest College in Allentown, PA. 

In 2017, I became a National Writing Project fellow after completing the invitational summer writing institute of the West Chester Writing Project. I currently serve on the leadership team for WCWP and co-write the Teacher to Teacher blog.  I have co-facilitated the 2020-2021 Continuity Days for the writing project, as well as collaborated with several Writing Project fellows to develop a program to sustain interest in writing project events and coursework and support the work of teachers in the field.

In addition to teaching fourth-grade ELA, I  enjoy facilitating ELA workshops in her district and at conferences including PCTELA (Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts) and KSLA (Keystone State Literacy Association). I am honored to team up with author and educator, Lynne Dorfman. Over the past several years, we have worked together, planned, co-facilitated writing instruction, and dipped into the art of teacher and student reflection.

The world of education is ever-changing. I am committed to learning and growing as a practitioner so I can best serve my students while holding fast to the best of what I have gleaned from many years as a classroom teacher.   I desire that students who enter my room immediately feel a sense of safety, value, and connection as I teach and guide them to become stronger readers, writers, and communicators.  

Family, Interests, and Hobbies

My husband and I were blessed to have raised four beautiful children and now have the thrill of being grandparents to our gorgeous granddaughter.   We share a deep appreciation for nature and a passion for cooking.  These interests keep us quite busy and happy when we’re not working.  I have also been rekindling my enjoyment of painting with both watercolors and oils,  finding creative inspiration on my walks and hikes through the woods.