BRAINERD — An influencer in the classroom, at sporting events and in the lives of those students she touches every day were the superlatives given by students who nominated Brainerd school district’s newest Teacher of the Year.
Surprised during her sixth hour class Tuesday, March 21, Brainerd High School math teacher Dana Kaiser was in awe as a flood of people entered her classroom to present her with the award, including her husband Greg Kaiser and children Ruby and Milo.
Seeing her family enter the room, Kaiser said “it’s my babies,” as they handed her a bouquet of flowers and balloons while jumping into her arms.
“Days can be hard for teachers,” Kaiser said. “You hear the, especially as a math teacher, how much ‘I don't like math’ or whatever. And so that tends to be what you focus on, and you do. — It's easy to lose sight of, you are making a difference, that they are feeling and that you do care. So it's very rewarding right now.”
“She cares so much about her students,” said Mariah Alderson, a senior at BHS and one of the students who submitted Dana Kaiser for the award.
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“She teaches math (unlike) any teacher before,” Alderson said. “She's just so good at it and I learned so quickly from her. She just cares so much about her students' lives, not just their academics. … She really goes above and beyond.”
Though Dana Kaiser may have been surprised to be nominated, it was no surprise to her colleagues Eric Jobe and Alexis Marcelo, both math teachers at BHS.
“Dana is a go-getter,” Marcelo said. “She is a person who gives it her all every single day. She's on top of it and very invested with each of her kiddos.”
Marcelo said she met Kaiser when she was new to the department and found her to be a great help as she learned how teaching should flow from one thing to another, and not just a list of boxes that need to be filled.
Students in Kaiser’s class, both current and former, know that they can come to her and get help, Marcelo said.
“Teaching isn't just a classroom job anymore, especially with the social and emotional needs of our students that have increased over the years,” Misty Jobe said, president of Education Minnesota Brainerd. “So we're always looking for nominees who exemplify the very best of all those various facets of being a high-quality educator.”
After being nominated for teacher of the year, it is up to the teacher if they want to proceed with the process, Misty Jobe said. They fill out a questionnaire which is then given anonymously to a committee that picks a winner.
“This is a challenging time to be an educator, especially when you're teaching a content area like math,” Misty Jobe said. “So what really stands out to me with her nomination was how clearly dedicated she is, not only to being a math teacher, but also being a role model and a caring adult in the lives of her students.”
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No matter who talked about Kaiser, all said she could always be seen outside the classroom at high school sporting events. Not just supporting her BHS Warriors, but by helping out the visiting teams and their fans, showing them around and helping where needed.
“It was really a great experience, I think, for all of the math teachers in the wing,” Eric Jobe said. “I know every teacher out there is working really hard with students, but it's kind of nice to see someone in your own department win an award like this.”
Misty Jobe said the district sends out an all-call for teacher nominations year-round and they accept nominations from everyone.
“Nominations can come from a student, they can come from a parent, they can come from another teacher, sometimes they come from former students who have since graduated,” Misty Jobe said.
Education Minnesota Brainerd is the teachers union and sponsoring organization for the Teacher of the Year program.
TIM SPEIER, staff writer, can be reached on Twitter @timmy2thyme , call 218-855-5859 or email tim.speier@brainerddispatch.com .
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