Class 2016

Kansas Teachers' Hall of Fame Class of 2016

Wes Schmidt-Tieszen

In today's world of mass and social media, it is imperative educators make content relevant to the lives of their students. Wes Schmidt-Tieszen embraced the idea with activities that emphasize higher level and critical thinking skills. "If a person walked into my classroom, they would observe what may appear to be chaos," Schmidt-Tieszen said. "In all likelihood, we would be engaged in a lively debate or discussion about American immigration policy, recreating the U.S. Congress, or attempting to pass or defeat the Affordable Care Act. [We may be] enacting Greek life in a lively city/state simulation competition."

David L. Torbett

David L. Torbett believes one word shaped his life's work, and that word is caring."From the first day I entered my classroom, my students knew I cared about their learning, their intellectual growth and about them, individually," he said. "If teachers do not obviously care, neither students nor teachers are likely to reach their potential."

"The love of learning is sometimes inherent in students; in others, it has to be planted, nutured, allowed to grow," Torbett said. "When students begin to care about their product, its creation can engender a respect, even love, for an otherwise tedious process. The result is a caring, lifelong learner."

Gary Price

According to Gary Price, the role of every teacher is to inspire students, teach them well, and enable them to move forward. Those who lead teachers have a similar role. "My mission is to remove barriers or provide ways around those barriers, creating a safe and comfortable environment where educators inspire and lead and students excel and grow, he said. "Always leave a place better than you found it." "In all the roles Gary has had, in his heart, he has always been a teacher," USD 250 Board of Education member Dawn McNay said. "Every excellent teacher has two qualities: they care about people and they listen."

Evelyn Rees

Evelyn Rees is referred to by many former students as both the best and the toughest teacher they ever had; and after 47 years in a classroom, she has amassed many former students.

"Ms. Rees is, hands down, the best teacher I ever had. She instilled a love of learning in those she taught and this love of learning took me from [the University of Kansas] to the University of Missouri and the University of California-Davis," Dr. James R. Barrett, said. "It has been said that the greatest gift is to inspire someone; Ms. Rees inspired me and every other student at Caldwell School."

Patricia Nash

Patricia Nash believes physical education should guide students in the process of becoming physically active and healthy for a lifetime.
"It's more than just fun and fitness," she said. "It's a place where students build character and get to know themselves."

"Students learn how to be leaders, respect others, work on social skills, communicate with classmates, compromise, learn life skills and accept new challenges," she said. "I believe health and physical education are the foundation in which all learning can take place."

Barbara R. Ewing

Barbara Ewing is convinced any student can learn and function, no matter the challenges. "To me, a teacher is a paragon, striving for excellence and perfection in the daily execution of her skills to teach," she said. "Teaching is a builder of brains."

"A teacher's leadership ability is most often defined by one who is happy, intelligent, courageous and can practice self-control in the classroom," she said. "Success is measured by a teacher's ability to present subject matter that generates questions, encourages listening, discussion and solutions.