Lewis and Clark Teachers

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Hal Stearns

Gary Moulton

"In 1962, Donald Jackson edited the Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Together with Jackson's notes, it is a work of scholarship almost unequaled anywhere, and certainly never surpassed. In the 1980s, Gary Moulton edited a new edition of the journals, in 11 volumes, for the University of Nebraska Press. He added much new material, and his is the definitive work today."

-- Stephen E. Ambrose, Lewis and Clark: Voyage of Discovery

Lewis & Clark Teachers Institutes

Teachers attend NHC Hal Stearns Lewis and Clark
Teachers Institute at Wayne State College. Stearns is at bottom right.

Lewis & Clark Institutes involve some 35 teachers

Thirty-five Nebraska teachers attended Lewis and Clark institutes sponsored by the Nebraska Humanities Council in June 2002.
The summer teachers institutes were conducted by prominent Lewis and Clark historians Hal Stearns and Gary Moulton. The institutes examined themes explored by Lewis and Clark on their Voyage of Discovery 200 years ago. They covered the issues of American Indians in the area, the geography and ecology of the trail and the historical and present-day impact of their journey.
The NHC Hal Stearns Lewis and Clark Teachers Institute was June 2-14, with one week in residence at Wayne State College and one week of independent study. Stearns remained available during the second week for guidance on the individual projects. Participating teachers earn two or three hours of graduate credit and a stipend of $500.
Stearns has conducted many programs on Lewis and Clark, as a speakers bureau member for the NHC and for the Montana Humanities Council. He teachers at Wayne State College and at the University of Montana.
Participating teachers are: Rebecca Feagan (St. Mary's School), Bellevue; Mary Jo Hansen (Coleridge Community School), Coleridge; Mary Albrecht (Emerson-Hubbard School), Emerson; Mary Critchfield (Pioneer School), Merriman; Faith Fisher (McDonald Elementary School), North Platte; Robby Simpson (Overton Public School), Overton; Kara George (Raymond Central High School), Raymond; Deborah Anderson (Scribner-Snyder School), Scribner; Sharon Sanders (E.N. Swett Elementary School), South Sioux City; Rae Brown (Pender Public School), Thurston; Mike Clay (Wakefield Public School), Wakefield; Julie Wisch (Wausa Public School), Wausa; Sharon Olson, Lori Ruskamp and Peggy Lutt, (all of Wayne Public Schools), Wayne; and Joanna Meehan (Winnebago Public School), Winnebago.
The NHC Gary Moulton Lewis and Clark Teachers Institute was June 2-7. A non-credit course with no individual project required, the one-week institute was in Lincoln. Participating teachers receive a stipend of $250.
Moulton is the Thomas C. Sorensen Professor of American History at UNL. He is editor of the multi-volume "The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition." He taught the Nebraska Humanities Council's popular 2001 Lewis and Clark Teachers Institute.
Participating teachers are: Linda Ratzlaff (Amherst Public School), Amherst; Leigh Ann Wilcher (Callaway Public School), Callaway; Cathy Larson (Eustis-Farnam Public School), Eustis; Gloria Best (Park Middle School), Becky Boswell (Lefler Middle School), Ryan Mahoney (Lefler Middle School), Kathi Mercure (Lux Middle School), Carolyn Patterson (Pound Middle School), Cindy Swanson (Sheridan Elementary School), Tamara Wenzl (Scott Middle School), all Lincoln; Robert Sankey (Lexington Middle School), Lexington; Jim Reeves (Loup City Public School), Loup City; Vida Sue Stabler (Umo ho Nation School), Macy; Daniel Jackson (Madison Public School), Madison; Lynda Baumback (McCook Junior High School), McCook; Bev Grueber (North Bend Elementary School), North Bend; Marge Nelson (Wausa Public School), Wausa; Mary Ann Gerdes (Wood River Rural Middle School), Wood River; and Sheila Tandy (Larsen Christian Academy), York.
For more information, contact NHC Program Officer Raymond Screws at 402-474-2131, ext. 15 or at ray@nebraskahumanities.org
Funding for these institutes is provided by the National Park Service, the Omaha World-Herald Foundation and the Nebraska Department of Education.
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2002 Hal Stearns Teachers Institute

Rae Brown, Pender Public School, Pender
Rae attended rural Nebraska grade schools and graduated from Wakefield High School in 1969. She attended Wayne State College, receiving a bachelor's degree in education in 1972 and a master's degree in education in 1991. She has taught at Pender Elementary School since 1972. She recently developed and began teaching a course at Wayne State College called "Lewis and Clark: Voyage of Rediscovery." In 2001 she was recognized as one of five Award of Excellence winners by the Nebraska Department of Education and was a finalist for 2001 Nebraska Teacher of the Year.

Mike Clay, Wakefield High School, Wakefield
Mike teaches social studies. He has been in education for 12 years, the last six at Wakefield. He has a bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in phychology from Doane College. He received a social science degree in education from Wayne State College in 1990 and a master's degree in K-12 guidance from Wayne State College in 1995.

Rebecca L. Feagan, St. Mary's School, Bellevue
Rebecca graduated from Bellevue High School in 1971, and began her college career at Kearney State College. She left school to marry and raise two sons, then returned to finish her degree in August 1992 through Peru State College courses at Offutt Air Base. She graduated in 1994 and became a fourth grade teacher at St. Mary's School, where she has taught ever since. In 1998 she earned graduate credits through the "Trails and Tales" summer course by Dan Holtz and Sara Crook at Peru State College.

Kara George, Raymond Central Public Schools, Raymond
Kara is a junior high school social studies teacher, teaching world studies, U.S. history and current events. She has a bachelor's degree in social studies education from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Pater, Minn. She is working on a master's degree in educational administration at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Now in her second year teaching, she has traveled abroad to India and New Zealand, where she did student teaching.

Sharon Sanders, Southern Elementary School, Blue Springs
Sharon received a bachelor's degree in education from Wayne State College in 1966 and a master's degree in physical education and wellness in 1989. She taught physical education to grades 7-9 in Colorado, returning to South Sioux City to teach junior high for three years, high school for three years and currently in elementary school. She has taught four coaching certification classes at Western Iowa Tech since 1989.

Robby D. Simpson, Overton Public Schools, Overton
Robby received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Nebrska-Lincoln in 1980 and a master's degree in elementary administration from Wayne State College in 1989. He taught fifth grade in Newcastle for eight years. In 1988 he became building supervisor and teacher of fifth and sixth grades at Dwight Elementary School. Since 1991 he has taught in Overton, where he currently teaches social studies and computer technology, as well as being head coach for boys and girls track.

Julie Wisch, Wausa Public School, Wausa
Julie Wisch teaches seventh grade math, life science, biology, environmental science and anatomy and physiology. She is in her second year at Wausa Public Schools this year. She returned to Nebraska after an absence of 16 years, the last 12 years in Denver, where she taught in the Denver Public Schools system for three years. She also attended the 2001 Lewis and Clark Teachers Institute.
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2002 Gary Moulton Teachers Institute

Photo
Not Available Gloria Best, Park Middle School, Lincoln
Gloria is originally from Mitchell. She began teaching second grade at Park Elementary School, then left teaching for a few years to work at the State Department of Education and the Mexican American Commission. She teaches American studies at Park Middle School, where she has been for five years. She has a master's degree in history and philosophy of education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She also coaches volleyball and girls softball.

Mary Ann Gerdes, Wood River Rural Middle School
Mary Ann was born at Fort Smith, Ark., and lived in Kansas and Oklahoma before moving to Wymore, where she graduated from Wymore Southern High School. She has a bachelor's degree in family and consumer science and elementary certification from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has taught at Marquette, Grand Island, St. Joseph, Mo., Columbus and Hall County District No. 16 schools. This fall, she will teach sixth grade at Wood River Rural Middle School.

Bev Grueber, North Bend Central Public School
Bev is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a major in elementary education. A 30-year classroom teacher, she has a master's degree from Doane College in curriculum and instruction. She won the 2001 Presidential Award for elementary science. She helped author Nebraska SMILES units integrating Nebraska history with math, science and language arts. She was a participant and presenter for the Nebraska Math and Science Initiative.

Photo
Not Available Daniel Jackson, Madison Public Schools
Dan taught for nine years at Wolbach before moving to Madison, where he has been teaching for more than 20 years. He has taught everything from mathematics and physical science to computer application to computer programming. He also coaches.

Cathy L. Larson, Eustis-Farnam Public Schools
Cathy has a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She taught for nearly eight years in country schools in Custer County before moving to Eustis-Farnam seven years ago. She commutes between the Eustis and Farnam sites teaching life, earth and physical science. This year she also taught computer application to junior high school students.

Kathi Mercure, John Lux Middle School, Lincoln
Kathi teaches seventh and eighth grade social studies. She attended Doane College and graduated from Peru State College. She taught at St. Andrew's Catholic School in Tecumseh and Culler Middle School in Lincoln before moving to Lux when it opened in 1997. She is a Student Council sponsor, coaches cross country and track and is leader for eighth grade trips to Washington, D.C., and international summer tours with People to People student ambassadors. She received the 1998 Spotlight Cablevision award for the Lewis and Clark project that she created for students.

Marge Nelson, Wausa Public Schools
Marge is a 28-year veteran of the teaching profession, for the last 25 years at Wausa teaching fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades. She has taught a wide range of elementary school subjects and in junior high school her specialties include social studies and English. For the last 11 years, she also has been the Wausa High School speech coach. She is a graduate of Wayne State College.

Carolyn Patterson, Pound Middle School, Lincoln
Carolyn graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1980 with a degree in business education. She is certified to teach language arts, social sciences and business in grades 4-9. After being hired by Lincoln Public Schools, she taught business education for 17 years at Lefler Middle School. For the last four years, she has taught eighth-grade social studies at Pound Middle School.

Jim Reeves, Loup City Public Schools
Jim graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 1989 with a comprehensive social science endorsement. He also is certified in driver education and elementary counseling. Since graduating, he has been a social studies instructor at Loup City Public Schools, where he teaches junior high students. He also is elementary school counselor for Loup City and coaches cross country and track.

Bob Sankey, Lexington Middle School
Bob has taught at Lexington for 24 years and is currently the eighth-grade team leader. He received a bachelor's degree from Sterling College in Sterling, Kan., and taught at Garnett, Kan., while earning a master's degree from Kansas State Teachers College (Emporia State University). He has been involved with the state geography alliance, G.E.O.N. and recently helped complete a standards-based curriculum project celebrating the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Tom Strunk, Nebraska City High School
Tom has been at Nebraska City for 13 years and currently teaches American history. His previous teaching experience includes nine years at Iola, Kan., one year at Grinnell, Iowa, and 10 years at Columbus Lakeview School. He also is head cross country coach and assistant coach for boys track.

Cindy Swanson, Sheridan Elementary School, Lincoln
Cindy was born in Newman Grove, where she attended a one-room school from kindergarten through sixth grade. She graduated from Newman Grove High School and received a bachelor's degree from Midland College in Fremont. She taught elementary school in Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas before becoming a teacher with the Lincoln Public Schools 13 years ago. For the last seven years, she has taught fifth grade at Sheridan.

Sheila Tandy, Larsen Christian Academy, York
Sheila received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has been teaching a variety of multi-grade classes from kindergarten to fourth grades for 16 years at Larsen Academy. She also has served as head teacher for the last 13 years.

Leigh Ann Wilcher, Callaway Public School
Leigh has a master's degree in elementary education and training in many areas, including cooperative learning. She has taught elementary school for 24 years, two in a one-room rural school and the rest at Callaway Public School. Recently, she has been working on Callaway's language arts and math teams dealing with state standards.
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For more information, contact the Nebraska Humanities Council.
Phone 402-474-2131 or e-mail nhc@nebraskahumanities.org

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	Rae Brown, Pender Public School, Pender Rae attended rural Nebraska grade schools and graduated from Wakefield High School in 1969. She attended Wayne State College, receiving a bachelor's degree in education in 1972 and a master's degree in education in 1991. She has taught at Pender Elementary School since 1972. She recently developed and began teaching a course at Wayne State College called "Lewis and Clark: Voyage of Rediscovery." In 2001 she was recognized as one of five Award of Excellence winners by the Nebraska Department of Education and was a finalist for 2001 Nebraska Teacher of the Year.
	Mike Clay, Wakefield High School, Wakefield Mike teaches social studies. He has been in education for 12 years, the last six at Wakefield. He has a bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in phychology from Doane College. He received a social science degree in education from Wayne State College in 1990 and a master's degree in K-12 guidance from Wayne State College in 1995.
	Rebecca L. Feagan, St. Mary's School, Bellevue Rebecca graduated from Bellevue High School in 1971, and began her college career at Kearney State College. She left school to marry and raise two sons, then returned to finish her degree in August 1992 through Peru State College courses at Offutt Air Base. She graduated in 1994 and became a fourth grade teacher at St. Mary's School, where she has taught ever since. In 1998 she earned graduate credits through the "Trails and Tales" summer course by Dan Holtz and Sara Crook at Peru State College.
	Kara George, Raymond Central Public Schools, Raymond Kara is a junior high school social studies teacher, teaching world studies, U.S. history and current events. She has a bachelor's degree in social studies education from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Pater, Minn. She is working on a master's degree in educational administration at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Now in her second year teaching, she has traveled abroad to India and New Zealand, where she did student teaching.
	Sharon Sanders, Southern Elementary School, Blue Springs Sharon received a bachelor's degree in education from Wayne State College in 1966 and a master's degree in physical education and wellness in 1989. She taught physical education to grades 7-9 in Colorado, returning to South Sioux City to teach junior high for three years, high school for three years and currently in elementary school. She has taught four coaching certification classes at Western Iowa Tech since 1989.
	Robby D. Simpson, Overton Public Schools, Overton Robby received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Nebrska-Lincoln in 1980 and a master's degree in elementary administration from Wayne State College in 1989. He taught fifth grade in Newcastle for eight years. In 1988 he became building supervisor and teacher of fifth and sixth grades at Dwight Elementary School. Since 1991 he has taught in Overton, where he currently teaches social studies and computer technology, as well as being head coach for boys and girls track.
	Julie Wisch, Wausa Public School, Wausa Julie Wisch teaches seventh grade math, life science, biology, environmental science and anatomy and physiology. She is in her second year at Wausa Public Schools this year. She returned to Nebraska after an absence of 16 years, the last 12 years in Denver, where she taught in the Denver Public Schools system for three years. She also attended the 2001 Lewis and Clark Teachers Institute. top

Photo Not Available	Gloria Best, Park Middle School, Lincoln Gloria is originally from Mitchell. She began teaching second grade at Park Elementary School, then left teaching for a few years to work at the State Department of Education and the Mexican American Commission. She teaches American studies at Park Middle School, where she has been for five years. She has a master's degree in history and philosophy of education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She also coaches volleyball and girls softball.
	Mary Ann Gerdes, Wood River Rural Middle School Mary Ann was born at Fort Smith, Ark., and lived in Kansas and Oklahoma before moving to Wymore, where she graduated from Wymore Southern High School. She has a bachelor's degree in family and consumer science and elementary certification from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has taught at Marquette, Grand Island, St. Joseph, Mo., Columbus and Hall County District No. 16 schools. This fall, she will teach sixth grade at Wood River Rural Middle School.
	Bev Grueber, North Bend Central Public School Bev is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a major in elementary education. A 30-year classroom teacher, she has a master's degree from Doane College in curriculum and instruction. She won the 2001 Presidential Award for elementary science. She helped author Nebraska SMILES units integrating Nebraska history with math, science and language arts. She was a participant and presenter for the Nebraska Math and Science Initiative.
Photo Not Available	Daniel Jackson, Madison Public Schools Dan taught for nine years at Wolbach before moving to Madison, where he has been teaching for more than 20 years. He has taught everything from mathematics and physical science to computer application to computer programming. He also coaches.
	Cathy L. Larson, Eustis-Farnam Public Schools Cathy has a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She taught for nearly eight years in country schools in Custer County before moving to Eustis-Farnam seven years ago. She commutes between the Eustis and Farnam sites teaching life, earth and physical science. This year she also taught computer application to junior high school students.
	Kathi Mercure, John Lux Middle School, Lincoln Kathi teaches seventh and eighth grade social studies. She attended Doane College and graduated from Peru State College. She taught at St. Andrew's Catholic School in Tecumseh and Culler Middle School in Lincoln before moving to Lux when it opened in 1997. She is a Student Council sponsor, coaches cross country and track and is leader for eighth grade trips to Washington, D.C., and international summer tours with People to People student ambassadors. She received the 1998 Spotlight Cablevision award for the Lewis and Clark project that she created for students.
	Marge Nelson, Wausa Public Schools Marge is a 28-year veteran of the teaching profession, for the last 25 years at Wausa teaching fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades. She has taught a wide range of elementary school subjects and in junior high school her specialties include social studies and English. For the last 11 years, she also has been the Wausa High School speech coach. She is a graduate of Wayne State College.
	Carolyn Patterson, Pound Middle School, Lincoln Carolyn graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1980 with a degree in business education. She is certified to teach language arts, social sciences and business in grades 4-9. After being hired by Lincoln Public Schools, she taught business education for 17 years at Lefler Middle School. For the last four years, she has taught eighth-grade social studies at Pound Middle School.
	Jim Reeves, Loup City Public Schools Jim graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 1989 with a comprehensive social science endorsement. He also is certified in driver education and elementary counseling. Since graduating, he has been a social studies instructor at Loup City Public Schools, where he teaches junior high students. He also is elementary school counselor for Loup City and coaches cross country and track.
	Bob Sankey, Lexington Middle School Bob has taught at Lexington for 24 years and is currently the eighth-grade team leader. He received a bachelor's degree from Sterling College in Sterling, Kan., and taught at Garnett, Kan., while earning a master's degree from Kansas State Teachers College (Emporia State University). He has been involved with the state geography alliance, G.E.O.N. and recently helped complete a standards-based curriculum project celebrating the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
	Tom Strunk, Nebraska City High School Tom has been at Nebraska City for 13 years and currently teaches American history. His previous teaching experience includes nine years at Iola, Kan., one year at Grinnell, Iowa, and 10 years at Columbus Lakeview School. He also is head cross country coach and assistant coach for boys track.
	Cindy Swanson, Sheridan Elementary School, Lincoln Cindy was born in Newman Grove, where she attended a one-room school from kindergarten through sixth grade. She graduated from Newman Grove High School and received a bachelor's degree from Midland College in Fremont. She taught elementary school in Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas before becoming a teacher with the Lincoln Public Schools 13 years ago. For the last seven years, she has taught fifth grade at Sheridan.
	Sheila Tandy, Larsen Christian Academy, York Sheila received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has been teaching a variety of multi-grade classes from kindergarten to fourth grades for 16 years at Larsen Academy. She also has served as head teacher for the last 13 years.
	Leigh Ann Wilcher, Callaway Public School Leigh has a master's degree in elementary education and training in many areas, including cooperative learning. She has taught elementary school for 24 years, two in a one-room rural school and the rest at Callaway Public School. Recently, she has been working on Callaway's language arts and math teams dealing with state standards. top