1950s
Sally
Finkbine Baker (BA '52) retired after a career teaching
first grade in Denver, Colo., Omaha, Neb., and Bethesda, Md.
She was also a "Romper Room" teacher for the children's
television program in Peoria, Ill., Omaha, Neb., and Washington,
D.C. She substitute taught in Eugene, Ore., and is now working
with the "Make-a-Wish" program for young children
there. She writes, "I've had a wonderful career and really
value the education I received at The University of Iowa."
William
C. Wolf, Jr. (PhD '59) was selected as one of the 20th century's
100 distinguished alumni by Kutztown (Pa.) University. After retiring
as a University of Massachusetts at Amherst emeritus professor, he
embarked upon a second venture. For the past six years, he has served
as chief evaluator for the National Center for Telecommunications
Technologies.
Teaching
is a Training for Life
Bruce
Zehnle (MA '68) says he always knew he wanted to be a teacher. "Ever
since I was a little kid, I felt inside that I wanted to teach." And
what a dynamic and passionate teacher he has become. As chairperson
of the Foreign Language Department at Union Catholic High School
in Scotch Plains, N.J., Zehnle goes beyond just teaching Spanish.
He teaches his students about life, culture, and respect.
"It's more important to inspire students to share and
to grow as learners and as people," Zehnle said. "It's
this kind of growth that will last them a lifetime."
Zehnle
likens his classroom to a one-room schoolhouse. His classes are
fun, yet challenging, and through them he incorporates stories
of life. "We learn an appreciation for diversity, the richness
of other cultures, and the value of every individual," said
Patrica Nuwer, a former student.
Richard Flynn, another former student, writes, "Mr. Zehnle became a role
model for me, and is still a driving force in all I do, as a student and as
a teacher, but more importantly, as a good person."
Zehnle's
teaching doesn't stop with high school students. He shares his
methods and techniques of bringing excitement to the foreign
language classroom through his local, state, and national "Teaching
the Teachers" workshops. To his workshops he brings his
famous puppets Pepe, Rosa, and Whiskers. "With the puppets,
I encourage my first-year students to speak Spanish," Zehnle
says. "It is a successful method that brings a great deal
of fun to the class and takes away some of the shyness of speaking
a foreign language. The memories of Pepe last far beyond the
high school years."
Zehnle
has received many awards for his teaching, including being named
Outstanding Foreign Language Teacher of the Year for New Jersey
and three times by the National Spanish Honor Society.
When
asked what motivates him, he replies, "It's always been
about the students. I've learned as much from them as I think
they've learned from me. "
1970s
Virginia
Hicks (BS '72/MA '81) taught Physical Education for the Muscatine
School District in Iowa for 14 years. In 1987, she was named Iowa's
P.E. Secondary Teacher of the Year. She received her Ph.D. from the
University of New Mexico in 1992. She worked for two years at the
State Department of Health in Santa Fe, was department chair and
an associate professor at New Mexico Highlands University for five
years, and served as division head at Santa Fe Community College
for two years. Hicks completed research in the area of body composition
with Native Americans. Currently, she is in her second year as department
chair and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She
writes, "I received an excellent education at The University
of Iowa and will be a Hawkeye forever."
Mary Jane
(Ruggles) Dow (MA '77) became a licensed professional counselor in
July 2001. After 20 years of being a career counselor at the University
of Utah Counseling Center, she now provides psychotherapy to heroin addicts
at Project Reality in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Ibarra
Selected one of USA Today's Top Teachers
Hector
Ibarra (BS '75/MS '92), a science teacher at West Branch
(Iowa) Middle School and a doctoral candidate in Science Education,
is one of only 20 teachers and teaching teams nationwide selected
by USA Today for its 2002 All-USA Teacher First Team.
USA Today selected the top teachers based on what the paper
considered their success at educating the "total child."
According to an article on the honorees, the teachers selected
"embody the notion of reaching out to every child, in
ways that can and can't be measured by standardized tests."
As a sixth-
and seventh-grade general and earth science teacher for 27 years, Ibarra
was nominated because of his hands-on approach to science education. Ibarra
and his students have analyzed the cost of conventional versus fluorescent
lighting in the West Branch School District, studied the environmental
impact of used automobile oil filters, and are building miniature solar
cars that may soon take part in a national competition. They are also coordinating
a project with students in Japan involving the construction of Lego-based
rovers that will be controlled over the Internet.
Since 1992, Ibarra has won nearly $500,000 in grants. And his research into his
school district's lighting costs led to the district switching to fluorescent
lights, saving taxpayers $1,000 a month. President Clinton cited the project
in his 1997 address on global climate change.
Ibarra is modest about his successes, including the USA Today recognition.
"It's a great honor," Ibarra says. "But I also know that we represent
many other outstanding teachers who do as good or better job than I do."
Ibarra credits the College of Education for inspiring him to make science education
more meaningful to his students, and says John Dunkhase, coordinator of
the Science Education program's graduate outreach efforts, "probably made
me who I am."
Ibarra said Dunkhase taught him to encourage students to seek the answers to
scientific questions using inquiry rather than by taking a "cookbook approach" to
science by simply following some "recipe" outlined in a textbook.
Ibarra also credits Science Education Professor Edward Pizzini for teaching him
the importance of research and the need to examine problems from multiple perspectives.
Those skills have come in handy over the years, not only in the classroom but
also in planning some of Ibarra’s more ambitious projects. The miniature
solar car race, which Ibarra spearheaded with the help of a $200,000 sponsoring
grant from the Iowa Energy Center, involved 100 Iowa teachers and more than 10,000
middle school students over five years.
Currently,
Ibarra and his students are preparing for a regional miniature solar
car race next May in West Branch, one of 16 sites nationwide. Winners
at the regional level will compete in a national race in June in Golden
Springs, Colo. -by Stephen Pradarelli
Ibarra's
Students win Governor's Environmental Award
Gov.
Tom Vilsack honored West Branch Middle School as
part of his prestigious Iowa Environmental Excellence Awards,
a program that honors organizations, businesses, and individuals
for their leadership and innovation in protecting Iowa's natural
resources. Students under the leadership of West Branch Middle
School science teacher, Hector Ibarra, received the Special
Recognition in Waste Management Award for 2002.
"West
Branch Middle School is a leader in protecting Iowa's environment," Vilsack
said. "I commend their outstanding example of keeping our land,
air, and water clean and healthy for all Iowans."
Ibarra's class
of seventh graders began a community service project to collect and press
oil filters. The students learned that more than 50 percent of oil filters
used by their parents were discarded in the garbage, posing a threat to
groundwater quality. Last school year, the students collected 265 oil filters
in the community and recycled more than 37 gallons of motor oil.
"At
the start of the project I had no idea where oil filters went
after use," said Emily Ciha, West Branch seventh grader. "I'd
never given it much thought. Working on this project has made
me aware of the problems caused by inappropriate disposal of
used oil filters and of the process you must go through to
make lawmakers aware of these environmental issues. Hopefully,
this will be the start of the process for stricter oil filter
disposal laws in Iowa."
1980s
Robert
Gillum (MA '82) is completing his third year as superintendent
of schools at Sherrard, Ill. The district recently completed
$7 million of school construction. Currently, he is heavily
involved in a strategic planning process that has nearly
150 stakeholders participating on Action Teams.
In
July, Gillum plans to participate in the China 2003 Educational
Leadership Conference as one of 35 U.S. educators on the trip.
David
Wilkinson (MA '82) is a teaching and learning specialist
for the Iowa State Education Association. He recently co-edited
the book,
A Framework for Understanding the Iowa Teaching Standards and Criteria, with
several colleagues. The book uses the framework for teaching established by
Charlotte Danielson to further describe the eight Iowa teaching standards and
42 accompanying criteria.
Mary
Beth Kelby-Lowe (MS '83) is an education technology officer
for Dakota Science Center in Grand Forks, N.D. She is currently
completing a five-year Technology Innovation Challenge grant
of $4.8 million while working on her Ph.D. at the University
of North Dakota. She started a science center with other
women in 1993 and is teaching and implementing the www.natureshift
web site in Norway this semester.
Wesley
Greenwood (MA '83) was chosen the 2002 Kansas Rehabilitation
Association Vocational Evaluator of the Year. He currently
works for the State of Kansas Rehabilitation in Wichita.
Dave
Barnett (MA '85) is the athletic director and head baseball
coach at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Fla., where he
became the winningest coach in school history in 1995. His
teams have been ranked in the top 20 in the national polls
three of the past six seasons, and during his tenure, two
players have been drafted in the top 10 rounds by a major
league club, and 10 others have signed pro contracts.
Among
his other honors, the National Association of Intercollegiate
Athletics-Region XIV recognized him as the 2000-01 Athletic
Director of the Year.
He
also serves as president of the Florida Sun Conference, is
on the board for St. Augustine Little League, and manages the
Vermont Expos, a minor league baseball team, as a summer job.
Sue
Schoonover-Kurschinski (BA '86) earned a master's degree in
educational psychology and counseling from California State University,
Northridge last year. Currently, she is working in two elementary
schools as a school psychologist in Wheaton, Ill., where she has
the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of exceptional
children and their families.
College
Alumna Receives Milken Award
Shawn
Carstensen Hays (BA '89) was two years into a physical
therapy program at the University of Delaware when she decided
to become a teacher.
Hays,
now a second-grade teacher at Pomona Elementary School in Grand
Junction, Colo., was tutoring in an after-school program and
discovered a deep interest in-and knack for-helping students
overcome illiteracy. An adviser suggested that she might be
happier as an educator than as a physical therapist.
"It
seems to be something that was a passion of mine without me
really realizing it," Hays says.
So, she transferred to The University of Iowa College of Education.
The change of heart may have surprised her, but she says it
didn't surprise her father, a former teacher himself.
"When
I called my parents to tell them about my decision I was a
little concerned about how they'd react," Hays says. "My
father's comment was, 'It's about time you figured out what
I've already known.'"
Further
proof that Hays found her calling came recently in the form
of the national Milken Family Foundation National Educator
Award, which recognizes elementary and secondary educators
who have demonstrated exceptional educational talent and accomplishment.
Hays will formally accept the award in April, which carries
an unrestricted financial award of $25,000, a portion of which
Hays plans to donate to a charity that works with troubled
children.
Hays
says that one of her most memorable experiences while attending
Iowa was student-teaching literacy in the urban classrooms
of Kansas City, while teaching English to Hmong and Hispanic
adults in the evening.
"I
really enjoy being around children," Hays says, "learning
how they learn, and trying to provide the stimulus to help
them discover the intrinsic value of reading and writing." -by
Stephen Pradarelli
1990s
John
Watzke (BA '90/MA '94/PhD '00) is the coordinator of
field supervision for the ACE M.Ed. program and a fellow
in the Institute for Educational Initiatives at the University
of Notre Dame. He teaches in the M.Ed. academic program with
particular emphasis in foreign language methods. His research
interests focus on teacher development and foreign language
teacher preparation and education policy.
Recent
publications include his book Lasting Change in Foreign Language
Education: A Historical Case for Change in National Policy
published February 2003 (Praeger) and research articles appearing
in The Teacher Educator and The Journal of Catholic Education.
Watzke
serves on the national advisory board of the International
Society for Language Studies for which he is also biannual
conference chair. He serves as general editor of the book series
Notre Dame Advances in Education (University of Notre Dame
Press) and book and media editor for the newly established
Critical Inquiry in Language Studies: An International Journal
(Lawrence Earlbaum and Associates).
In
February, Watzke gave a presentation to foreign language doctoral
students at The University of Iowa on his current research
project, "Survival to Professional Development: Research
on the Problem of Beginning Teachers."
Laura
M. Hittner (BA '97) teaches fifth grade at St. Paul's
Episcopal Day School in Kansas City, Mo. She recently returned
from Japan as a guest of the Japanese government through
the Fulbright Memorial Fund program. The program chooses
teacher applicants each year for a three-week trip to visit
Japanese schools and sites, where the educators learn about
their education system and culture. In return, the American
teachers bring back to their schools and communities a rich
insight of the Japanese people, thereby increasing public
relations, friendships, and encouraging a more peaceful world.
Mary
Lynn Retting (PhD '99) works in marketing and promotion
for Mt. Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She writes that
she enjoys representing the adult student accelerated programs
in business, accounting, marketing, RN-completion, and health
services administration-geared toward the working professional.
Enhancing
Achievment with Technology
University
of Minnesota Assistant Professor Scott McLeod (JD '98/PhD
'00) is creating a new program that will give school administrators
throughout the United States the edge when it comes to using
technology.
Few
principals, superintendents, and other school administrators
use educational technology effectively, but the School Technology
Leadership Initiative aims to change that, says McLeod, co-director
of the initiative.
"We
have a wealth of evidence that student achievement can be
enhanced by the effective use of technology in schools,"
McLeod says. "What we don't have is a critical mass of
school leaders who know how to make this happen."
The
three-year, $2.1 million initiative is the first program to
comprehensively address the full spectrum of the National Educational
Technology Standards for Administrators established by the
International Society for Technology in Education.
McLeod
credits his experiences as a graduate student running the Educational
Policy and Leadership Studies department's Research and Policy
Lab as being instrumental in giving him the technology skills
he uses on a daily basis. Those experiences, he says, combined
with the good leadership skills he learned from the Educational
Administration faculty provided him with opportunities to be
successful both academically and professionally.
"Professors
Bartlett, Wanat, Bills, Rzonca, and Young went out of their
way to mentor, shepherd, and be an incredible support system
for me," McLeod said. "I find myself trying to 'pay
it forward' with my own graduate students by providing rich
academic experiences and research opportunities."
To
learn more about the technology leadership initiative, visit
2000s
Tammi
Kuba (MA '00) was appointed to the National Board for
Professional Teaching Standards-School Counseling Standards
Assessment Committee. Kuba is the only Iowan appointed to
the team. She currently is an elementary school counselor
in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Kirsten
Bales (BA '01) teaches fourth grade for Southeast Polk
School District in Runnells, Iowa. Her students participated
in a service-learning project, called "Season of Sharing,"
where they earned donations by working for family members,
friends, and neighbors and purchased items for a family in
need.
Yung-Hung
(Sandra) Hsiao (MAT '02) is a Chinese-language teacher
at Indian Trail Academy High School in Kenosha, Wis. She
writes that she has applied the educational theories she
learned at The University of Iowa to her students and has
learned a great deal from them in return.
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