Teachers Honored During Banquet

By Dustin Kass, dustinKass@miconews.com

Osawatomie USD 367 teachers and staff gathered last week to celebrate three of the district’s top teachers, while unveiling plans to honor a recently fallen friend and coworker.

Teachers Charles Baker, Linda Meinig and Cindy Schwarz were among those honored at the Osawatomie USD 367 Honors Banquet on Friday.

Baker, an English teacher at Osawatomie High School, was named Osawatomie Teacher of the Year during the event. The district’s nominees for Kansas Teacher of the Year will be Meinig at the elementary level and Schwarz at the secondary level. (Profiles of the district’s three award-winning teachers will appear in upcoming issues of the Osawatomie Graphic.)

Kay Minden, assistant director of food service, also unveiled the district’s plans to honor Martha Kuder, the district’s longtime food service director. Kuder, who served as director from 1985 through last fall, died in a one-car rollover accident in September.

The district will construct a patio with a picnic area outside of the cafeteria doors of the high school, Minden said. The area will be completed by the time students return to school in August.

District officials also recognized music teacher Maggie McKain, high school biology teacher Mike Rush and physical education teacher Karen Shepherd with KU 25 Years of Service to Education awards. Also honored was Stanton Adams for 25 years serving on the Osawatomie USD 367 Board of Education.