PARIS – It was a pep rally tailor-made for teachers Monday as SAD 17 staff filled the auditorium at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School for the start of two teacher workshop days.

The event included a talk by Commissioner of Education Susan Gendron.

“This district is certainly blessed with a multitude of talented teachers,” said Superintendent Mark Eastman, as principals took turns introducing new hires, to continued applause.

Ron Kugell of Oxford, chairman of the SAD 17 Board of Directors, received a standing ovation when Eastman introduced him as this year’s recipient of the Mary Lou Burns Education Award. Along with his 12 years on the school board, Kugell has served as a teacher, assistant principal and adult education worker for the district, for a total of more than 40 years of service to the schools.

Eastman said the district is continuing to place great emphasis on having more students go on to higher education. He reminded teachers that the district’s goal is to have 80 percent of graduates go on to some sort of post-secondary learning by the end of 2005.

The Aspire Higher program that works toward that goal plans its Homecoming Parade Oct. 9 and a Pumpkin Fest on Oct. 24, he said.

“Over $250,000 in scholarships were given out in 2004,” he said, but, “We need to do better.” He reminded teachers that payroll deductions are available for “contributing to your favorite scholarship fund.”

Gendron told the teachers that the SAD 17 district’s Aspire Higher goals are “right on track” with the goal of the state education department, which is studying the demographics of Maine’s changing workforce.

“We have an aging workforce. And we haven’t been keeping our young people in Maine” by providing enough higher-paying career opportunities, Gendron said.

“Between 70 and 80 percent of the new jobs coming into Maine will require an associate’s or a bachelor’s degree,” she said. When baby boomers such as herself retire, she said, there needs to be an educated workforce to take their place.

To accomplish that, each teacher in each school in the state needs to work as a team and be flexible enough to try new initiatives. “It really is about customizing what we’re doing based on the needs of our children,” said Gendron.

The teachers will continue meeting for workshops on today. Wednesday will be the first day of school for grades kindergarten through seven, and grade 9. On Thursday, classes will begin for grades eight, 10, 11 and 12.