Now retired, Patricia Hurley Folmsbee had an exemplary career as a teacher and education consultant. From 1970 until her retirement in 1996, she served as a reading and language arts consultant for the East Windsor Board of Education in Connecticut and also spent time as an English as a second language coordinator with the board from 1990 to 1996 and the lead teacher for reading and language arts from 1995 to 1996. Earlier in her career, she was a teacher with the Chicopee Public Schools from 1964 to 1969 and 1960 to 1962, and a teacher for the Department of Defense Dependents School in Toul-Rosieres, France, from 1962 to 1964.
Alongside her primary career responsibilities, Ms. Folmsbee has contributed her skills to a number of other professional and civic endeavors. From 1989 to 1999, she was the treasurer for the Enfield Culture and Arts Commission, and was the reading education delegate to China for People to People International’s citizen ambassador program in 1993. Early on, she served as a town meeting member for the town of Southern Hadley, Massachusetts, from 1961 to 1967.
Following her retirement, Ms. Folmsbee has devoted her time to staying active with sports, having been involved in intermediate racquetball with Healthtrax since 1979, where she has placed first and second in a number of competitions. She placed third in the National NASTAR Ski Racing Competition in Utah in 2003, and also enjoys walking, tennis and kayaking with her husband. Additionally, she held the position of director for the Top Notch Gang from 2004 to 2018.
Inspired to a career in education in eighth grade when she saw fellow students struggling with reading, Ms. Folmsbee knew that she wanted to help give children a good start to their education. Embarking on her studies with a Bachelor of Arts from Albertus Magnus College in 1960, she then matriculated at the University of Massachusetts where she earned a Master of Education in 1962 and completed postgraduate coursework in 1969. She concluded her studies with a certificate in reading and language arts for grades K-12 from Central Connecticut State University in 1974 and is also certified as an intermediate instructor.
Having accomplished much over the course of her career, Ms. Folmsbee cites the highlight of her career as the send-off she received when she retired. She particularly recalls a moment when they spelled out her first name using character traits they admired in her — P for patience, I for integrity, T for trust, and so forth. This recognition, along with the gratification she feels when she is contacted by former students, makes her feel that she really made an impact and contributed to society. For her years of excellence, Ms. Folmsbee has been presented with an Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and named a Marquis Who’s Who Top Professional.
