Community
Alumni
Rachel Gutschenritter, a fourth grade teacher at North Lawn Elementary in Neodesha, Kansas, was selected for the Outstanding Elementary Educator Award.
Hannah Ketterman, a coach and counselor at Carl Junction High School in Carl Junction, Missouri, was selected for the Outstanding Secondary Educator Award.
The awards will be presented at 6 p.m. on May 11 at the Bicknell Family Center for the Arts, 1711 S. Homer.
Gutschenritter, a 2013 graduate of Neodesha High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Pitt State in 2018 and her master's degree in Special Education from Emporia State in 2021.
After working for the Tri County Cooperative and as a 4th through 6th grade special education teacher, she began her current position in 2022.
“She is a teacher known for innovation, creativity, and keen knowledge of best practices that have ignited her students,” wrote her principal, Hannah Wright, in her nomination. “For example, she flipped her classroom into a flexible seating area to better meet all her students' diverse needs. She works to find their unique strengths to help them overcome their struggles and develop a growth mindset.”
Gutschenritter has been praised for developing a rapport with students, parents, and colleagues that invites participation and establishes an atmosphere of openness.
She is active in North Lawn WILD Club, serves as STEM Chair, participated in Special Olympiads, and served on the district’s insurance committee.
Ketterman, a 2009 graduate of Frontenac High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Pitt State in 2013 and a master’s degree in Education Leadership from Pitt State in 2018.
After teaching and coaching at Cassville High School, she joined the staff at Carl Junction High School in 2015. There, she has served as a girls’ athletic training teacher, as well as the assistant softball and track coach, and is in her first year as a high school counselor.
She is active as a USA Weightlifting member as a certified level 1 coach and is a Missouri State Teachers Association member.
Her principal, Kyle Williams, said she has looked for innovative ways to push and improve her student including piloting a new lifting program with a focus on incorporating technology for student use that tracks individual progress and allows for goal setting.
Ketterman’s students participate in leadership book studies, and she guides the summer conditioning program for athletes.
"Coach Ketterman is always pushing you to be a better person-not just an athlete. She is not your average PE teacher, and you can tell she genuinely cares about you,” student Keely Johnson wrote in her nomination.
The awards will be presented by College of Education Dean Jim Truelove. The ceremony is open to the public.
Learn more:
