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Vol. 9 No. 27
Welcome back to The eMule! Here is the latest news from Poplar Bluff Schools to help start your week on the right hoof.
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2021 Teachers of the Year honored |
The annual Poplar Bluff R-I Teacher of the Year luncheon was hosted on Tuesday, May 4, at the Westwood Center in celebration of our 2021 peer-nominated “standouts during a year of standouts,” as Superintendent Dr. Scott Dill put it.
Above: (Left to right) Brandon Moon, Mary Barousse, Christine East, Staci Barker, Cathy Burnett, Leslie Riefle, Kristi Sittig, Christina Spencer, Pamela Davis, Laura Powell and Michelle Caswell.
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This year’s District TOY was Cathy Burnett (above, right), special education teacher. Also the Elementary Grade-Span and Eugene Field TOY, Burnett is a candidate for the Regional TOY through the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Burnett is the “epitome of a selfless, servant leader” said her principal, Jennifer Taylor (left). Taylor read a parent letter from the nomination packet that referred to Burnett as a “guardian angel” for all the academic progress that their daughter, who has autism spectrum disorder, had made in first grade. The parents wrote: “Thank you for all that you have done not only for our ‘Sally,’ but for all the ‘Sallies’ that have come before and will come after.”
Burnett has been teaching special education at Eugene Field since 2007, before which she taught both junior high and elementary at Puxico beginning in 1994. She received her master’s degree in elementary and special education administration from Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau in 1999.
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Chris East (above, right), communication arts teacher, was named the Middle School Grade-Span and Junior High TOY.
Her principal, Candace Warren (left), quoted a parent letter that stated: “There are not enough words in the English language to describe how deserving she is.” Warren quoted a student letter that explained how East “changed her mind about teachers.” Lastly, a co-worker commented: “Where would our kids be without Mama East?”
A "well-rounded teacher," noted Warren, East taught variously in Poplar Bluff at the former Mark Twain Elementary, Oak Grove and then the Middle School beginning in 2000, prior to taking her current position. She earned her master’s in elementary administration from William Woods University in Fulton in 2004.
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Pam Davis (above), business education instructor, was named the Secondary Grade-Span and High School TOY.
Her principal, Mike Owen (above), stated that she is one of those teachers who “walks in and starts making an impact,” pointing out that she is only in the third year of her career at PBHS. He explained that the qualities he would want to be cloned in all new hires are being knowledgeable, working hard and caring about others. Davis has all three, the principal continued, being a former business owner; teaching her students about fundraising and charity; and attending almost as many sporting events as a coach does.
Davis has been teaching business at the High School since 2018, before which she served as a substitute teacher at Doniphan for two years. She earned her bachelor’s degree in business education from Central Methodist University in Fayette in 2018.
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Brandon Moon (above, right), culinary arts instructor, was named Technical Career Center TOY.
Moon has “taken the program to the next level,” according to Director Charles Kinsey (left), with the adoption of the ProStart industry-standard curriculum, among other improvements. He not only teaches cooking but “life skills,” according to one parent letter Kinsey read. “He taught me everything that I need to know in life,” a student was quoted as saying.
Moon has operated the culinary arts program since 2016, before which he taught language arts and then math at Greenville beginning in 2012. He received his associate degree in baking and pastry arts from Sullivan University in Kentucky in 2007, and his bachelor’s in middle school education from Southeast Missouri State University in 2012.
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Laura Powell (above), at-risk teacher, was named the first ever Mark Twain School TOY.
Powell is “energetic,” her “passion makes other people better” and one would never know when she is “having a bad day” due to her absolute professionalism, according to Principal Aaron Burton (above). “When I know I arrived was when you accepted me, and allowed me to be your coach,” Burton stated.
Powell started at Mark Twain this school year, before which she was an alternative coordinator and intervention teacher at East Carter. She earned her bachelor’s in psychology from Southeast Missouri State University in 1993 and later gained her adult educational learning certification.
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Kristi Sittig (above), intervention teacher, was named Middle School TOY.
“If you don’t have a Kristi Sittig, you need to run out and get you one real quick,” commented Dr. Josh Teeter (above), her principal. Even though she is a veteran teacher, Sittig is known to share new techniques with educators fresh out of college, he added. “She makes time for everyone, even when you know she doesn’t have time to make,” said one co-worker, according to Teeter.
Sittig started her career in education at Zion Lutheran School in 1993, teaching first and second grade and later serving as principal. Then she took a position at the former 5th and 6th Grade Center. She moved into her present position in 2018.
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Christina Spencer (above, right), second grade teacher, was named the O’Neal TOY.
Spencer is “O’Neal through and through” having spent her entire teaching tenure at the elementary school as well as having attended there as a young student, according to her principal, Dr. Amy Dill (left). She has a “true love for teaching,” according to a colleague; conducts “cool science experiments,” a student said; and generally “makes learning fun.” Dill summarized: “You only get one second grade year, and she makes it awesome."
Spencer has served at O’Neal from 2006 to present, before which she worked at Agape Day Care & Preschool beginning in 2000. She earned her bachelor’s in elementary education from Southeast Missouri State University in 2000.
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Also a former student of her elementary school, reading teacher Staci Barker was named the Oak Grove TOY.
Barker has established a “positive learning environment” as she works to form relationships with her students so she can discover “what motivates them,” according to Principal Jenifer Richardson. “No job is too big or small to tackle,” added Richardson, noting that Barker took on virtual instruction during the pandemic even though technology is not necessarily her forte. Barker often jokes that she is a jack of all trades and master of none, yet has “mastered the role of being a successful, experienced teacher,” Richardson concluded.
Barker has spent her tenure as an elementary teacher, starting as a classroom aide at Lake Road in 1995, then to Mark Twain Elementary, Williamson Kennedy, Eugene Field, Mark Twain Kindergarten and finally to Oak Grove for the past 13 years. She received her master’s in reading instruction from Arkansas State University in Jonesboro in 1998.
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Leslie Riefle (above, right), first grade teacher, was named the Lake Road TOY.
Riefle used to “play school with her sister” as a child, her mother has shared, according to Principal Rondi Vaughn (left). While she has twin girls of her own, Riefle “gives so much of her time” and maintains that “desire to learn.” Vaughn read from a teacher testimonial: “She teaches her students to strive for excellence, to love reading, and to respect each other; and she teaches all of us, as her peers, to give our best for our students, to wear a smile, to have faith, and to remember that the storms of life can often produce beautiful rainbows and new growth.”
Riefle has taught at Lake Road since 2018, before which she served at the 5th & 6th Grade Center beginning in 2013. She received her master’s in elementary administration from William Woods University in 2015.
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Mary Barousse (above, right), kindergarten teacher, was named the Kindergarten Center TOY.
Barousse is “one of those teachers who you never see or hear from” complaining, yet “amazing things are happening in her classroom,” according to her principal, Jessica Thurston (left). “That gift is hard to find,” she said. Known to never say ‘No’ to something that is asked of her, Barousse has a way of keeping her fellow faculty members grounded, Thurston continued. As proof of her impact, Barousse was nominated for the building level honor by four separate co-workers, Thurston made note.
Barousse taught first grade one year in Texas in 1996, before moving to the kindergarten level at O’Neal, followed by Mark Twain Kindergarten, then spent a decade in Louisiana, and finally landed at the Kindergarten Center in 2011.
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Michelle Caswell (above, right), special education teacher, was named the Early Childhood Center TOY.
Caswell is “all in at all times,” said her principal, JoAnne Westbrook (left). She is a teacher whom Westbrook can ask of just about anything. “Literally, she will say, ‘Whatever you need,’” Westbrook said. She is “compassionate, beyond the classroom,” the principal continued, and always says, “thank you for taking a chance on me.” As an aside, her classroom therapy dog Hope has “changed the emotional landscape of our building,” Westbrook noted.
Caswell served as Parents As Teachers coordinator for ECH from 2000-2010, and a classroom aide for five years, before advancing to SPED teacher in 2015.
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Congratulations to our 2021 retirees! |
A total of 26 faculty and staff members, including two long-time administrators, were honored during a retirement reception held Tuesday, May 4, at the Westwood Center.
This year’s retirees devoted a combined 400+ years of dedicated service to the Poplar Bluff School District, and more than 525 to the field of education, according to Laura Barrett, administrative assistant of personnel.
Above: (Left to right) Angie Jackson, Lori Tibbs, Sheryl Talkington, Pamela Waller, Carmen Hoggard, Angela Bowman, Dr. Regina Williams, Dean Lackey, Cindy Robertson, Cynthia Jackson, Susan Chronister, Maj. Greg Crites, Yalonda Livingston, Martha Henry, Regina Stratton and Brenda Resnik. Not pictured are: Mark Barousse, Shiela Boyles, Jerry Brame, James Ethridge, Kenneth Gilbreath, Kathe Hapanowicz, Linda Herzog and Nancy Shock.
~Special dedication to Paige Robertson and Stephen Shupe.
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Graduation
The commencement ceremony for the PBHS Class of 2021 will take place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 20, at the Black River Coliseum.
Summer School
Summer School will run from Wednesday, June 2-Tuesday, June 29 for incoming students, grades K-8. An additional session will be offered for students, grades 1-6, from Monday, July 12-Friday July 30. Deadline to enroll is Friday, May 14. Click here to complete an enrollment form.
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On Monday, May 3, the ShowMe Times reported about our Class of 1992 memorial donation; and our Math-A-Thon fundraising effort for St. Jude.
KWOC recognized our March Athletes of the Month.
On Tuesday, May 4, the DAR reported about our greenhouse plant sale.
On Wednesday, May 5, the DAR reported about our retirement reception; and our Teacher of the Year luncheon.
KWOC reported about our unpublished second grade authors.
On Friday, May 7, the DAR reported about Kyle Dicken Memorial Scholarship recipient Layton Sanders.
On Saturday, May 8, the DAR continued its TOY series with a profile of Chris East of Junior High.
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