Cindi Hodgdon

I am from New Hampshire and teach German at a public high school in Peterborough, NH. I was lucky to have amazing high school and college German teachers who showed me the benefits of becoming a German teacher. I have taught German at public and private high schools and now I teach levels 1-AP. We are a PASCH school and we have a private exchange with a school in Salzburg.

Networking with other German teachers is a passion of mine. I am the immediate past President of the NH Association of World Language Teachers. I have also served as President of Northern New England AATG and as Presiding Officer of Chapter Presidents for AATG. I am the leader of the FLACH committee for AATG. I have worked closely with the Goethe-Institut, publishing both a traveling escape room and a sustainability and food unit. With all of these roles, I have promoted the teaching and learning of German language and culture and the tooting of our own horns as teachers and for our programs.

During my career I have had the pleasure of working with too many fantastic German educators to count. I am amazed every day at the support and camaraderie of German teachers. I enjoy making connections with my colleagues and sharing ideas. I enjoy bringing people together to work on communal projects. I am happy to share my knowledge and if I don’t know something, I love the challenge of finding out and learning something new!

What I find most important is advocacy for the program (I call it 'Toot your own horn') and advocacy for German. As a GEM, I can help others to strengthen their German program and create a network of teachers who support each other on a constant basis. Sometimes teachers just need the right information and a little push to successfully promote their program.