Amy Petersen is our homegrown hero! She has dedicated her entire 33 year career to teaching 2nd and 3rd grades at Cornell Grade School, officially retiring at the end of the current school year. Even with retirement drawing near, she still shows up every day with the same positive attitude and team player spirit she exhibited when she started. She is a positive role model and influence to all of her students as well as her colleagues, consistently doing everything she can to go above and beyond for her students. Examples of things she does to enhance the educational experience of her class as stated by students of hers include:
Pig out party with Charlotte’s Web
Fun activities for spelling
Cool experiments
Educational centers and games
Taking her students to the park
Besides her endeavors in the classroom, she is a bright beacon in the community as well. She helps with numerous fundraisers and is excellent about obtaining donations to aid the organizations she is volunteering for. Everyone who comes in contact with Mrs. Petersen is greeted with her friendly attitude as she acknowledges everyone in the community, many of whom are past and present students and parents. Being in one school for her entire career has allowed her to teach many children of past students she educated towards the beginning of her tenure, who are always excited to visit and reminisce with her. She holds the uncanny ability to remember every student she has had in her extensive career as well as many of their birthdays; a trait which proves the focus she invests into her pupils.
To conclude, Amy Petersen is the epitome of great, caring, American teachers. Her kindness and warm smile are appreciated by everyone who has learned from and worked with her. You would have a hard time finding anyone in our community who does not have something positive to say about her. If every school had an Amy Petersen teaching in it, this world would be a much brighter place.
-Nominated by Ashley Follmer
Homegrown Hero is an award from the St. Louis District Dairy Council. You can read more about this honor on their webpage. https://www.stldairycouncil.org/homegrown-hero