Dear PBEA members:

We made it through the 2020-2021 school year! It has been a year where the teachers might have been watching the end-of-the-year countdown more than the students. As I end my term as President of PBEA, one word comes to mind, change. So many of us get comfortable in our everyday situations and do not welcome change easily. Unfortunately, we found that some things are beyond our control and this school year has forced us to accept change and plow forward through this relentless pandemic.

Overall, the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted numerous parts of academia. Institutions have been forced to adjust the way they interact with students, faculty, and staff. Innovation and trial-and-error situations forced institutions to think creatively and configure new ways to approach teaching and learning.

Though the year brought new challenges, it provided new opportunities to create successful virtual classroom environments. Maybe a positive which comes from all of this was the alternative and creative ways to instruct students in a virtual environment which will afford them experiences that they will implement in the workplace well into the future. Combining virtual learning platforms, incorporating instructor-developed projects, and integrating virtual teams for project completion can ensure that students gain the confidence needed to perform in a virtual work world.

I hope we can all look back on these times that have changed the business world as we know it and feel triumphant. The students were not the only ones who learned this year. We also learned and embraced new technology to keep learning continuously, we became more creative in preparing lessons at a higher level, and we learned to develop a closer bond with students, parents, administrators, and faculty.

We appreciate having you as a PBEA member and value your input as we continue to work together as a team to continue growing and expanding business education in PA. Also, as a final note, consider joining NBEA, National Business Education Association. It is the nation’s leading professional organization devoted to serving educators in instruction, administration, research, and the distribution of information for and about business.

Our PBEA conference is scheduled online again this year. I hope to see you all since we have some amazing speakers plus a question-and-answer segment where we can share our expertise with all.

Stay well.

Nancy Waters

PBEA President

I am originally from Allentown, PA. I graduated from Bloomsburg University in 2018 with a degree in Finance. I worked in finance for two years before returning Bloomsburg for my master's in Business Education. I am currently a second-year teacher at Avon Grove High School.

Good afternoon Business Education Supporter!

Thank you for your continued support for the PBEA, and your continued advancement of the field of Business Education. We hope that your school year is going well during these times, and we are here to continue to also support you. Also, we also wanted to gently remind everyone of chances to stay involved with PBEA through membership and our upcoming virtual conference.

There are three different ways that you can show your support for PBEA through membership including:

A one-year membership is only $35

A three-year membership is only $90

A student membership is only $15.

You can find out more information about how to register by clicking here: http://pbea.info/become-a-member/.

The upcoming FREE online annual PBEA virtual conference will be held on the evening of Thursday, November 18, beginning at 6 p.m. You can find out more information about the conference by clicking here: http://pbea.info/pbea-conference/.