Robin Mara is enthusiastic about the Charlotte Teachers Institute – her position enables her to combine many of her own interests - science, arts management, communications and teaching.
“We provide innovative professional development seminars for teachers,” said Mara, program associate for Charlotte Teachers Institute (CTI), a partnership among Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), UNC Charlotte and Davidson College. “Our teachers (called CTI Fellows) work closely with University and Davidson faculty and each other in small groups over a seven-month period to study a particular content area in depth. CTI offers eight, highly interdisciplinary seminars each year for CMS teachers in kindergarten through high school and all subject areas. They collaborate with one professor and 12 other fellows, and each develops an original curriculum unit to take back to his or her classroom – and to be published on the CTI and Yale websites.” (CTI is an affiliate of the Yale National Initiative for Strengthening Teaching and Learning at Yale University.)
A native of Memphis, Tenn., Mara completed a bachelor’s degree in biology from Rhodes College, where she met husband Neil. After a brief stint in cancer research at St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Mara moved to Mississippi with her husband; she changed careers, working in public relations for a junior college. Another move brought the couple to Fayetteville, where Mara worked as associate director of the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County. Eventually, Mara and her husband relocated to Charlotte, where she completed a second bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s in reading education from UNC Charlotte.
While her two children, Kevin and Kate, were growing up, Mara worked as a CMS literacy teacher before completing graduate studies. Mara’s CTI position became available as she was finishing her master’s degree.
“CTI brings together my education, arts and science interests in service to teachers and, ultimately, students. Education is where my heart is,” said Mara. “As a teacher, reading and writing was my focus. My work with CTI allows me to help teachers expand and energize their learning and bring that knowledge and enthusiasm back to their students. I love my job and am doing something new and different virtually every day. I work with our director Scott Gartlan and teachers and seminar leaders to brainstorm ideas for seminars as well as special events, such as our Exploding Canons speaker series. I write press releases, manage the website, coordinate with partners in the community and handle basic nuts and bolts, such as bookkeeping, seminar logistics, ordering of supplies and other administrative details.”
Mara has been on campus for three years, and she loves working for the University. “From the time I arrived, I’ve been amazed at how tremendously supportive this community is – in all the various departments I’ve interacted with. UNC Charlotte has to be one of the most supportive environments I’ve ever encountered. Everyone is so helpful, and I try to pass that on to others who come my way.”
Beyond the University, Mara and her husband take “blue highway” trips, named for the blue lines on a map. “Neil is a history buff, and we both like taking roads less traveled. Most recently, we went to Winston-Salem and explored some old mill towns along the way.”
As a volunteer, Mara is active with local efforts to increase family literacy. She is part of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Literacy Roundtable and the Early Literacy Workgroup.