February Teacher Feature: Kim Anderson, Agriculture Teacher and FFA Advisor
Tue, 02/13/2018 - 9:32am
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Kim Anderson was a substitute teacher at Clearbrook-Gonvick from 2004 - 2012. In the fall of 2012, she was hired to teach Agriculture full time. She grew up on a grain and beef farm in Central Illinois, the middle child of five girls - this explains a lot about why Kim is the way Kim is! She moved to Minnesota to attend the University of Minnesota, Crookston. Scott Anderson, her now husband, and Kim kept running into each other in Animal Science class, at church, and the neighbor’s farm. It seems these constant encounters were not coincidental. Now, nineteen years later they’re married with two boys (Jacob and James), a farm, and Kim has a career in agricultural education - she is living her dream!
Why did you choose to be a teacher? My second grade self wrote, “I want to be a teacher because I like the sound of chalk on the chalkboard.” With the replacement of chalkboards for whiteboards, I almost gave up on my dream; however, during my freshman year at UMC, the school adopted the agricultural education program and given the great experience I had in my high school agriculture and FFA program, I knew this was the right choice. Teaching allows me to share my passion for the agriculture industry, to expose youth to the processes that provide them with food and clothing, and to give more students the opportunity to develop into premier leaders through the FFA organization. Each time one of my students goes to college and texts me a message that their class is studying how to calculate a ration or artificially inseminate a cow and it was a breeze because they learned about it in my class first, it’s a reminder of why I chose this profession!
What did you do before coming to Clearbrook-Gonvick? Before teaching at Clearbrook-Gonvick, I was a substitute teacher in this district and the Bagley school district. I believe every teacher should substitute teach before they teach full time. Those years exposed me to a broad spectrum of teaching strategies, organization techniques, and lesson planning. It taught me to be flexible and it reaffirmed that junior high and high school was where I was meant to be. God bless the elementary teachers!
What is the best part of your job at Clearbrook-Gonvick? The people. As we grieve the loss of one of Clearbrook-Gonvick’s greats, Mrs. Karen Nielsen, we hear new stories every day of how she touched lives and made her impact on all whom she taught and worked with over the years. These stories aren’t only of her excellence as an educator, but many memories shared this week were of a teacher/co-worker who was compassionate and did the little things that made you know she cared about you. Like Karen, the staff and administration here care about these students in a way that not every school can claim. They are invested in the students’ academic well-beings, as well as their personal well-beings. People here don’t clock in at 7:50 and clock out at 3:40. They are here early and leave late. They come to watch the students in athletics and plays and band concerts, just because they know it means something to those kids. I tell my students often that we are a family - we have our ups and downs, we drive each other crazy sometimes, some get along better than others, but just like a family should, we look out for each other and we take care of each other. That is definitely a legacy that Mrs. Nielsen left with her Clearbrook-Gonvick family.
What is the biggest challenge of your job? Everyday I pray that my enthusiasm about learning new things and about the world of agriculture makes my students think a little bit about what went into the sandwich they are eating or about the tractors in the fields they drive by. Even if they don’t share my passion, I still want them to feel that a-ha moment of understanding. The forces working against my enthusiasm seem overwhelmingly great at times: finding enough time in the school year to teach everything I want, competing with social media, competing with Fort Night (a video game they’ve educated me on), trying to get them to see the value in knowledge, being able to find a connection with each student who walks through my door, and getting them to laugh at my jokes.
If you could have any job in the world - what would it be? Why? Besides owning a “locally grown” restaurant, running a wedding-coordinating business with my sisters, starting a bakery/coffee shop on main street, and growing a Christmas tree farm, I think I’d have to say that the career I would love to wake up to every morning would be to work at Anderson Farms raising cattle. Amazing experiences happen on the farm - watching calves being born, raising calves up to be mothers themselves, letting a herd out to pasture for the first time in the spring and hearing them take their first bites of green grass, crossing new genetics and praying that the outcome is what you planned for, baling hay, the list goes on and on. I just love it.
What do you do when you are not working at the school? During the warm months, I love being outside with my family. Whether it’s working in the garden, working with the cattle, swimming in the pool, or mowing the lawn, I love being out in the sun. During the cold months, I love being inside preferably baking, watching a classic movie like Pride and Prejudice, or just sipping coffee in silence.
If you could go back in time to being school aged, what age/grade would you pick? Why would you pick that age/grade? I would have to say my high school years could use some touching up. I was extremely active in school and enjoyed all of those years, but I did just okay as a student. That is one of my biggest regrets. I’d take a high school do-over for both the fun and exciting experiences and to be able to challenge myself more academically. That is part of what drives me as a teacher - showing my students that they really can do more than what they think and pushing them to not get too comfortable in a spot without challenging themselves.
Describe a wish or hope you have for the New Year 2018 - either personal or professional. Professionally, I hope to keep expanding the agriculture/FFA program at Clearbrook-Gonvick, and encouraging the understanding of and respect for the agriculture industry. With that, personally, I hope to fine tune the balance between my career and my family. When my phone has more pictures of my students and FFA members than it does of my sons, I have to do some reflecting and try to figure out how to give the most to both of my worlds. It’s a work in progress that I know many of us struggle with. This year it’s getting some more of my attention.
And now a word or two from the students about Mrs. Anderson...
Mrs. Anderson loves to tell stories. What is your favorite Mrs. Anderson story? “Her National FFA Conference stories” “Any story about her kids.” “When Mrs. Anderson was telling us about her son James screaming. She can’t take screaming so she punches the air.” “I like her story about her childhood and where she grew up.” “My favorite story is when her kid James was screeching. She got so mad because she hates screeching and started punching the air!” “One time she told us a story about how she got detention for sharpening her pencil.”
What do you think Mrs. Anderson does when she is not at school? “Cooks and sleeps” “She farms.” “She takes care of her family and works in the farm.” “She farms, takes care of her three kids (Scott included), daydreams about sleeping, and most likely reads stuff online about FFA.” “Farming and taking care of her kids.” “Spends time with her family and friends.”
What is the best thing about Mrs. Anderson? “She is nice and kind.” “How easily she can get off topic about anything.” “Her personality” “Everything. She is a great teacher and a great person.” “How she never gives up on a person and is always there if you need her.” “I love her attitude, her teaching style, her personality, her singing voice, and most of all that she is the best FFA advisor in the history of FFA!” Thank you Mrs. Anderson for all you do!
What do you think Mrs. Anderson was like when she was in high school? “Nerdy” “A perfect but not so perfect kid.” “I can see her being a good students and one of the ones who always participates.” “She played basketball because she loves it and probably was quiet and perfect.” “Intense. I feel like she was a hyper person.” “Kind of dorky in a good way and outgoing.”
February is “I love to Read Month”. What is a book you think Mrs. Anderson should read? “Harry Potter” “An ‘I love farming’ book” “A book about FFA or cattle.” “Ferdinand and the Bull” “I think Mrs. Anderson should read ‘The picture of Dorian Gray’.” “I think she should read the ‘Odyssey’ because it is a book.”
If you could send Mrs. Anderson on a vacation anywhere in the world, where would you send her? Why would you send her there? “Canada so she can’t escape the cold.” “I would send her to Italy so she can be on the Mediterranean beach.” “I would send her to Illinois. She always talks about going there.” “I would send her to Texas, but I would be with her!” “Ireland where all the gingers are!” “I would send her to the Oklahoma National Stockyards because she likes animals and cows.”
What is one thing Mrs. Anderson ALWAYS says? “Ha, ha. That’s great.” “Really, Savanna??” “Did I ever tell you when my kid…” “Naomi, stop talking!” “Deeply offended.” “Kayla, be quiet.”