Teacher of the Year
John Hurd was the master of ceremonies for the Rotary Teacher of the Year Presentation. Each year we recognize a teacher for having a lifelong positive effect on students. This is the 24th year our Club has recognized an outstanding Petoskey teacher. “We ask a lot of our teachers, and as a society, we tend not to give them the recognition they deserve, particularly in these times, with so much focus on standards, rankings, teacher evaluations, testing, taxes, etc., etc.”
John thanked the members of the Teacher of the Year committee for their efforts. Members include Bob Metzger, Steve Brummeler and Bill and Roger Winslow. John also did a shout-out to the leadership that enables excellent schools with great teachers. Dr. John Scholten and Kent Cartwright were recognized and were asked to convey Club appreciation to the Board and staff.
Rick Wiles, a former recipient and Cal Prins, the principal of Central School said a few words before the introduction of the 2016 recipient, Jennifer Greer. Jenny was born in Caro, MI. Dad was a teacher and Mom was a “professional volunteer.” She graduated from CMU, received her teaching certificate from SVSU, and also earned a Master’s in Education. She was introduced to the area when she worked as a summer counselor at Camp Daggett. Her first teaching job was in Cedarville, and after a year, her dream job came open in Petoskey. She nervously applied for it and the school decision makers wisely hired her. Jenny has now taught 1st Grade at Central Elementary for 17 years.
When asked where her passion comes from, Jenny talked about wanting to make a difference, and couldn’t imagine doing anything else as meaningful. She also talked about what a great feeling it is when a student “gets it.”
She’s very active professionally. The Red Cedar Writing Project and the Foundation for Teaching and Learning are just a couple of examples. Jenny is also very involved in the community. She describes herself as a “chronic volunteer” and is involved with Girls on the Run, Central School Carnival and Band Boosters.
Jenny was joined today by her husband Mike, children and two grandchildren.
Congratulations to an exceptional teacher and a great contributor to our community