Teachers of the Year selected for 2000
From the Department of Public Instruction
A statewide selection panel has picked these four outstanding educators
as Wisconsin's 2000 Teachers of the Year:
- Elementary Teacher of the Year -- Sue A. Kuhn, second- and third-grade
teacher at Southern Bluffs Elementary School in La Crosse;
- Middle School Teacher of the Year -- Mark J. Mueller, language arts
teacher for River Bluff Middle School in Stoughton;
- High School Teacher of the Year -- Rod R. Vick, English teacher at
Mukwonago High School; and
- Special Services Teacher of the Year -- Marge E. Stangeland of Blanchardville,
Title I coordinator and Gifted and Talented teacher for Argyle Elementary
School.
They were chosen from a pool of 88 public school teachers who received
Kohl Teacher Fellowships.
Selection for the Teacher of the Year program emphasizes instructional
leadership and the ability to inspire and motivate students. One of the
2000 Teachers of the Year later will be selected as Wisconsin's representative
to the National Teacher of the Year program.
Kuhn considers herself a facilitator as much as a teacher who
strives to involve all of her students in learning and teaching. "In
my classroom we do lots of sharing. Third-graders still love show and
tell. I allow classmates to ask questions about what others are sharing,
giving them a stage for self-expression."
Literature circle is a favorite time of day in Kuhn's classroom. "The
children come to the group on their designated day with a book that they
have been reading. They read a part for all to hear and tell what the
book is about." She finds the activity has its intended result of
inspiring reading as "students are scrambling to get their hands
on books that others have shared."
In support of Kuhn's nomination, Mary Lin Wershofen, Southern Bluffs
Elementary principal, described Kuhn as having a gift she brings to the
education profession and to children. "For all of the children Sue
has inspired to learn and for the many who will have the opportunity to
share her enthusiasm for teaching, Sue deserves recognition."
Kuhn, a teacher since 1973, has been teaching at Southern Bluffs since
1992. She holds a bachelor's degree in elementary education and a master's
degree in reading, both from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. She
is active in her community, serving as a volunteer in the local hospice
program. Professionally, she is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, serves
as corresponding secretary for the Midwest Reading Council, and is involved
in the annual Young Author's Conference.
Students encounter more than just language arts lessons in
Mueller's classroom. "I teach [my students] three critical things
that surpass the ordinary curriculum: how to be compassionate, tolerant
individuals; how to interact successfully with a society that can be arbitrarily
inequitable and random; and how to advocate for themselves to open doors
for their own future."
A letter from a departing student captures Mueller's philosophy of reaching
and teaching the entire student to be a whole person. "You have opened
my eyes and showed me the true potential I have. Now, because of you,
I want to learn, and make a difference. I hope you can touch every student's
life as you have mine."
Mueller co-created the school's Students Demonstrating Success club,
which rewards students for making good choices, and coordinated and directed
the annual eighth-grade Lock-In. He has been instrumental in the school's
service-based learning program, leading his students to national recognition
for their public service advertisements on teen pregnancy and abstinence
awareness. He has presented at a national service-learning conference.
Carole Klopp, education consultant with Cooperative Educational Service
Agency 2, describes Mueller as a role model and peer consultant for teachers
in the area of service learning.
Mueller is a cooperating teacher for University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
students. He teaches language arts and is an eighth-grade block leader
at River Bluff Middle School, where he has taught since 1995. He also
taught middle school two years in Minnesota. He is a graduate of the University
of Wisconsin-Madison.
Vick uses reflective writing to encourage his students to look
beyond the letter grade on their essays and sometimes appears in toga
to introduce classic Greek literature or as Mark Twain to inspire his
classes to read "Tom Sawyer." In creating an inclusive classroom,
Vick uses tables instead of desks. "Years ago it occurred to me that
traditional rows neither facilitated discussion, nor allowed students
who offered thoughtful answers an opportunity to be appropriately recognized....
The ring of tables allows students to face each other on equal ground,
and to speak with each other rather than over or around. Participation
is valued in room 127... ."
Vick developed a news lab to give motivated journalists an opportunity
to put together a publication. Many of his students use the program as
a springboard to journalism careers. As a published writer, Vick seeks
Mukwonago's emphasis on writing as a positive for writing and for education.
He noted that studies frequently show a correlation between writing ability
and success in the world of work. "Even the personal computer has
increased the need for students to become proficient readers and writers;
the world of the Internet is a world dependent on the written language."
A former student and high school English teacher and cross-country coach
wrote a letter of recommendation for Vick citing how one teacher could
influence his life. "When I came to Mukwonago, I felt very much like
a number and very uninvolved in my life. When Coach Vick welcomed me into
the Mukwonago running community that year, I found an identity I never
knew existed." Jeffrey Schreiber says he has become Vick's protégé.
Vick is an active volunteer in his community and has organized and directed
the local "Village Run." He teaches English at Mukwonago High
School and has 22 years of experience in education. He holds a bachelor's
degree in education from The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and a
master's in education from Carroll College in Waukesha.
Students wrote their own learning goals for a unit on the Titanic
that had them searching the Internet, watching documentaries, reading
1912 newspaper clippings, and discussing decisions they would make in
similar circumstances. The unit culminated with a student performance
that included poetry, creative dance, sign language, and gymnastics. Stangeland
believes "educators need to cultivate essential thinking skills across
the curriculum that enable students to see connections, communicate, and
solve problems such as those encountered in the real world."
The Argyle Title I coordinator and gifted and talented teacher is instrumental
in the school's Accelerated Reading and Music in Our Schools programs,
and coordinates the Book It!, Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), and Read Aloud
programs. She developed an elementary post office and the Argyle Anthology,
a publication that includes K-12 writing and illustrations. She coaches
the Invent America Contest, Geography Bee, and Thinking Caps Quiz Bowl
teams.
In a letter of support for Stangeland's nomination, fellow teacher Korene
Olson wrote of Stangeland's real love of learning and great thirst for
knowledge. "She has unique and creative ways of instilling this [love
of learning] in students of all ages and abilities. I think her greatest
asset is her enthusiasm, which motivates not only her students, but also
her peers."
Stangeland is active in her church and community, devoting time to the
Main Street Program, Welcome Wagon, and Jaycees. She started teaching
in 1972 and has been at Argyle Elementary School since 1974. She holds
a bachelor's degree in education from Illinois State University and is
continuing her studies at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
Posted September 10, 1999