Moving On...

…is hard to do. I have wanted to be a teacher since 7th grade, more specifically a Home Economics teacher. I have to shout out Linda Madsen, who inspired this in so many of us! It was the only class I took that I felt I would use in the adult world. While I use more of my educational knowledge daily than I thought, those classes certainly contained the most applicable content in my daily life. While my plan in 7th grade was altered by life, I eventually ended up exactly where that 12 year old wanted to be. As with most things you desire as a child, they are more complicated in the adult world.

School Picture 2006?

I started my teaching journey at UW Barron County (UWBC) getting my Associates Degree. I didn’t know if I could handle being a mom and wife, working more than full time, and being a student. Turns out I could, I went from UWBC straight to the University of Wisconsin-Stout. I not only finished my Bachelors in Family and Consumer Sciences Education, but also started my Masters in Human Development and Family Studies.  I was fortunate to complete my student teaching under Cathy McCabe in Grantsburg, Wisconsin. I had a terrific experience there and it was evident that the curriculum was valued and supported in the community. This experience led to big transitions for me as I moved from a tiny community of about 550 in WI to the bustling suburbs of Chicago, Illinois where I had accepted a job at Hinsdale Township High School District 86.

I was immediately introduced to the intricacies of teaching an “elective”. Something I had not thought about before was how other curricular departments, the educational climate as a whole, and communities view these courses. I always knew they were fundamental in the development of children and essential to function as a contributing member of society. Turns out research supports educating the whole child, but society doesn’t necessarily value that philosophy. Over time I have seen the push for honors and Advanced Placement (AP) electives around the country, and as a result devalue the essential skills that lead to overall life success in our children. For example, a student I didn’t know came down to my classroom one day, he asked if I could cut the watermelon he was carrying. He had brought it in as a prop for an AP class project he was delivering that day. The young man hadn’t thought through how he was going to prepare it for consumption for his audience. I told him he could use one of the kitchens with cutting boards and knives and could borrow a container for it, but needed to return it and clean everything. He looked at me and said “I don’t know how to use a knife.” 

My Final Year 2025

Another class I taught was called Single Survival. Its curriculum was based on skills you need to live on your own after high school. Many students have no idea how to address an envelope, the number who didn’t even know their own address would shock you... They don’t understand credit scores or the importance of reading an apartment lease, a loan contract or how to understand credit card interest. We had a simple unit on home maintenance, because what is a pilot light? Screwdrivers are different? I have to talk to an actual person to figure this out? I’m not allowed to use power tools… and the list goes on and on. These are skills that you and I use often, but that these young people haven’t had the opportunity to develop. One student told me, “Ms. Oler, I don't need to know any of this, we hire people to do these things for us.”

The fact is they WILL need these skills and based on my global experiences and exposure, the U.S. education system is letting down our youth by not providing the opportunity to develop essential competencies for success in life. If we can articulate our questions in a way that others can understand, when we can communicate clearly both our needs and our expectations, when we are allowed to make mistakes and then correct them, we are more successful in all components of the life we create for ourselves.

The fact is I love Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) because I know the knowledge and opportunities provided within the curricular content not only provide students an opportunity to grow and develop essential skills for life, but that they make society better as a whole. That is what has driven me throughout my career.  Deciding to move on after over two decades at Hinsdale Central was not an easy decision. The pressure and drive to achieve that is felt by students is equally palpable for the teachers. For the past two decades I have been so driven professionally because of that environment. I have been able to work with teachers on 3 different continents, author curriculum that teachers in two countries use to educate future teachers, mentor dozens of teachers and hundreds of future teachers, work with phenomenal professionals who challenged me and made lifelong friends. 

Today though, I am not returning to the classroom with my colleagues. I was fairly paid, enjoyed the work with adolescents, and had amazing colleagues but I wasn’t growing, just spinning my wheels.  The personal impact of that became more and more evident to me in the last few years. I am someone who intrinsically seeks out ways to grow. I need to feel like I am improving the community I live in and grow personally. These ideas that I value so highly were no longer happening for me in the classroom, and I needed to change that. I will continue to be involved in Family and Consumer Sciences and Career and Technical Education (CTE) through a variety of avenues. I speak at conferences and during professional development in districts. I am fortunate to mentor new teachers in single teacher departments (shoutout to all the districts that value their CTE educators and provide mentors for them!). I get to write curriculum and help develop course proposals. In addition, I remain on several boards involved in FACS and I hope to find additional opportunities to support my own growth and the growth of a field I know is instrumental in improving society. 

Thank you to each and everyone of you who has helped me grow, dried my tears, listened to my complaints and helped me become a better person along the way.  While there are so many incredible educators I’ve been fortunate to work with, there are a few I want to thank. To Liz; who made me feel welcome on that first day over two decades ago, I will miss your humor and the way you grounded me when I couldn’t see past my own ideas. Marge, Barb and Carolyn; who taught me so much about the intricacies of teaching and forming relationships, your influence is felt in every type of work I engage in and I am so grateful. April; who disagreed with me in such a reasonable manner that we both grew exponentially. She always made sure I was the one driving on Fridays so she could get her teacher nap in. When we had a tough day we both looked out our own window, and cried in silence together.  Kristen; who went through District 86 induction with me, who traveled between campuses that first year, and who had the same passion for growth and drive to improve the community, thank you for inspiring me. To the leaders who I learned so much from; Pam B., Bill W., Pam K., Matt S., Lisa F. and John M. thank you! While we didn’t always agree, we always tried to do the best for our students. To the students who taught me far more than I taught them, thank you, you made me feel like what I did mattered even when the outside world didn’t seem to think so. Otis, Jihad, Emily, Faith and the countless others whom I can’t name individually, THANK YOU for making this career so fulfilling. 

To the others who encouraged and supported me there are not enough words to thank you. To my daughters who sacrificed so much Mom time and Sundays at the grocery store.  Whose field trips I couldn’t chaperone and for whom I couldn’t be class mom because I couldn’t take the time out of my own classroom… thank you for supporting me and sacrificing. I love you and I tried so hard to be a good role model you could look up to. 

And with that, over two decades in the classroom comes to an end. 

Go out into the world and be a good human.