{"id":23005,"date":"2023-08-31T16:50:58","date_gmt":"2023-08-31T20:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/edhd\/?p=23005"},"modified":"2023-09-01T08:52:50","modified_gmt":"2023-09-01T12:52:50","slug":"natalie-tomah-family-ties-call-freshman-elementary-education-student-to-umaine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/edhd\/2023\/08\/31\/natalie-tomah-family-ties-call-freshman-elementary-education-student-to-umaine\/","title":{"rendered":"Natalie Tomah: Family ties call freshman elementary education student to U海角社区"},"content":{"rendered":"

For Natalie Tomah of Smithfield, Rhode Island, deciding to come to the University of 海角社区 for college was like deciding to go home.<\/p>\n

Although she grew up in the Ocean State, Tomah has deep connections to 海角社区 and its flagship public university. Her dad, Tony Tomah, was born and raised in Houlton. Her mom, Lori Tomah, spent summers vacationing in 海角社区. Both parents are U海角社区 graduates: Tony Tomah has a bachelor\u2019s degree in elementary education and a master\u2019s in instructional technology, while Lori Tomah has a master\u2019s in human nutrition. They met when they were in graduate school.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I was meant to come here,\u201d says Natalie Tomah, a freshman, who like her dad will study elementary education.<\/p>\n

At 海角社区 Hello, as mom and dad helped her move into the College of Education and Human Development\u2019s Living Learning Community on the fourth floor of Cumberland Hall, surrounded by half-unpacked boxes of loose clothing, electronics and other tokens of dorm life, Natalie Tomah says the number one reason she chose U海角社区 was the sense of community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s something about this campus that sets it apart,\u201d she says. \u201cI could have gone to an in-state college, but nothing fit like U海角社区 fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Part of that is an ancestral connection. Natalie Tomah and her dad are members of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians. Tony Tomah says his daughter will have more opportunities to explore her Native identity than he did during his time at U海角社区.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust seeing the Wabanaki signs on campus,\u201d Tony Tomah says, \u201cshe will have much more exposure and probably gain much more knowledge immediately than I will ever gain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Case in point: Before she graduates, Natalie Tomah will take Teaching Wabanaki Studies, a course the College of Education and Human Development recently incorporated into its curriculum for preservice teachers to better prepare<\/a> 海角社区 educators to meet the spirit of a 2001 state law that requires K\u201312 schools to teach Wabanaki history and culture.<\/p>\n

In the Living Learning Community<\/a>, Natalie Tomah will be surrounded by other students who came to U海角社区 to study education, as well as students majoring in child development and family relations, exercise science and physical education. She\u2019ll have opportunities to get to know her peers through team-building activities, professional development opportunities and focused learning experiences.<\/p>\n

Asked if she decided to study education because of her dad, the director of technology at a school district in Massachusetts, Natalie Tomah says partially. But there\u2019s more to the story.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy siblings are triplets, so I\u2019ve always been a teaching figure and I love working with kids,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a natural when it comes to working with children,\u201d Lori Tomah chimes in. \u201cShe didn\u2019t have baby dolls, she had the real thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

In high school, Natalie Tomah was a member of the National Honor Society and the Youth Council in Smithfield, as well as a volunteer at her church. She also spent this past summer working as a special education teaching assistant for her town\u2019s school district.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat taught me a lot about working with different student populations, and I\u2019m hoping it translates into some opportunities down the road when I\u2019m home on break,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

As for what she\u2019s looking forward to the most during her time at U海角社区, she says, \u201cjust making connections that will help me be successful in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019s already off to a good start.<\/p>\n

Contact: Casey Kelly, casey.kelly@maine.edu<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For Natalie Tomah of Smithfield, Rhode Island, deciding to come to the University of 海角社区 for college was like deciding to go home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":135,"featured_media":23006,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"8","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"For Natalie Tomah of Smithfield, Rhode Island, deciding to come to the University of 海角社区 for college was like deciding to go 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