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Math instructor surprised in class PDF Print E-mail
Education
Written by Brian McCauley   
Wednesday, 21 January 2009 08:00
Andy Wesner’s teaching career has come full circle — and he’s only in his second year.

Although he wasn’t always sure what he wanted to teach, Wesner, a Paola High School math teacher, eventually discovered his passion for numbers and for making sure today’s students understand the basic concepts of mathematics.

By his senior year at Sterling College in Sterling, Kan., Andy’s dedication had drawn the attention of his educators, and he was selected as a “Teacher of Promise” by the Sterling College education faculty.

The designation allowed him to attend the Kansas Exemplary Educators Network State Education Conference in Topeka, a life-changing event for him beyond just his career. At the conference, one of his instructors met with a fellow instructor from Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kan. The instructor from Tabor also brought an education student with a bright future.

The student, Sarah, was introduced to Andy, and the rest, as they say, is history. The couple was married a little more than a year later, and they moved to Paola in the summer of 2007.

Andy said he and Sarah were looking for a place closer to Kansas City, as well as one with an opening for an elementary teacher and a secondary math teacher. Paola fit the bill, and Andy got a job at Paola High School, where he has developed a good relationship with Principal Jerry Henn, who previously had been a principal in Andy’s hometown of Ellenwood, Kan. Sarah teaches fifth grade at Sunflower Elementary School.

Earlier this month, as Andy was teaching geometry, he got a surprise that brought back college memories.

Henn entered his classroom and got on the phone with Alexa Posny, Kansas commissioner of education.
Posny informed Andy that he had won the Kansas Horizon Award given to impressive first-year teachers, and she thanked him for his service.

Andy said his class congratulated him along with his wife, Sarah, Paola USD 368 Superintendent Rod Allen and PHS assistant principal Frank Perbeck, all of whom had slipped into the classroom during the surprise.
“It was very humbling,” Andy said.

In February, Andy and his wife will again travel to Topeka for the KEEN State Education Conference, where he will accept the award. He also said they’ll be sure to track down the educators who helped bring them together three years ago.

Even though he’ll enjoy the blast from the past, Andy said he and Sarah are excited about what lies ahead in Paola.

“It’s a great place, I feel really welcomed,” he said. “We are really blessed.”
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