2000 Joseph Webber Teaching Award Winner

This is the 6th year for the Joseph Webber Teaching Award to be presented in Missouri, and this year we are departing from our five-year tradition by presenting it to a team rather than to an individual. The four people nominated simply could not be separated. They are representative of a larger History Day team within their school system where the cross-discipline approach to using History Day as a teaching tool has spread the program from junior high to high school and from history class to English class to drama classes and, from what I understand, it has also literally enveloped the school media center. Again, the Webber Award winners will be Missouri's nominee for the national prize in June.

Helen Branson, Scott Randall, Leah Prewett and Mary Mueller, all from Rolla Junior High School, Rolla, have been chosen 2000 Missouri Teachers of Merit.

Obviously, this group was recommended by the coordinator from their region. But in addition to his recommendation, we received glowing letters from professors at the university that figuratively speaking is “in their backyard,” from fellow teachers, their school principal, the father of one of our most successful history day alums, current and past students and from one parent who said, “. . . I . . . have been very fortunate in having all three children pass through the rigorous and conscientious teaching and discipline of these fine teachers.” He goes on to detail student achievements facilitated by “the Rolla 4.”

Here are some of the things we've learned about them:

• In recent years they have accompanied 10 student delegates to National History Day.
• Their program has grown to the point where a school contest has become necessary.
• At this year's school contest 60 students earned the right to proceed to the regional contest at the University of Missouri-Rolla.
• This year, 24 of their entries—33 students in all—advanced from Rolla's contest to the contest here today.
• They have conducted many workshops promoting the use of NHD as a cross-curricular method of teaching. Among the recent ones, to the National Convention of the Coalition of Essential Schools.
• In addition to history, English and drama, these teachers and their librarian buddy have involved departments of computer applications, art, industrial arts and science in their History Day cross-curricular program.

Each of them could, and probably should, be honored as “teacher of merit,” but since it is simply impossible to separate what they are doing as the leaders of a much larger team at Rolla, we're honoring them together, here, today.

Congratulations to Ms. Helen Branson, Mr. Scott Randall, Ms. Leah Prewett, and Ms. Mary Mueller, National History Day in Missouri's Teachers of the Year!