MCC CONGRATULATES DEDICATED EMPLOYEES ON RETIREMENT

A teacher with one of the brightest smiles and biggest hearts is closing up his planner and turning in his room key this spring. When Mark Carlson was in high school he knew he wanted to be a teacher, and though it took a few years to get there, it is a career that has given him great satisfaction and enriched the lives of everyone around him.

“When I was in high school we had a day where all of the seniors took staff positions for one day. I spent the day as a math teacher and it was so much fun I decided that’s what I wanted to be,” said Mr. Carlson. But in those years teaching jobs were difficult to find and Mark didn’t want to live far away from his hometown. “I also enjoyed agriculture, so I went to the vocational school in Pipestone and worked for the USDA in Pipestone county.” But this was during the farm crisis of the 1980s and Mark found the work with farmers in financial stress to be discouraging. So in the winter of 1985 he began working on his associates degree and his bachelor’s degree. He remarked, “I worked hard! I wanted to be a teacher, not a student so I took heavy loads and finished the degrees in just under three years.” Mr. Carlson’s first job was in Ruthton, where he taught fifth grade. He loved his job but was always on the edge of budget cuts. “Every year I received a letter in the spring saying my position would be cut, but then I’d get a call that I could come back. After the fifth year, they really did have to let me go.” But before the next school year Ruthton, Slayton and Chandler-Lake Wilson all gave him job offers! It made for a difficult decision, but he took the job teaching sixth grade for Chandler-Lake Wilson. Mr. Carlson said, “I taught there for three years. I really loved working for (administrator) Mary Mattson. When she said ‘do what’s best for kids’ she really meant it.” After the consolidation Mark taught sixth grade at MCC West Elementary for eleven years, then finished his middle school endorsement and has taught junior high math for the past fifteen years. He laughs as he recalls his feelings about moving to the junior high job. “I was asked to move to that position but I was so nervous! It turned out to be the best decision - I was made for this.” When asked why he loves to spend his days with adolescents, Mr. Carlson stated, “You can reason with a junior high kid. I get along with them very well. I’ve always tried to treat my students like they are my own kids. Sometimes they need strong words, and I’m not perfect but I think I’ve been pretty successful.”

Along with teaching, Mr. Carlson’s passion has always been coaching. He estimates he coached both boys and girls basketball for twenty-five years. “Some of my best friendships are through coaching, and more than half of my conversations with alumni are about sports.” Mark has very special memories of umpiring baseball and softball games as well. “Mark Schleismann got me started umpiring. He was so smart! While we drove to games together we’d quiz each other on different situations so we were better prepared. Mark really protected me when I was a young umpire.” Another friend and mentor for many years is Dave Johnson. Mr. Carlson said, “Mr. Johnson was one of my teachers almost every year I was in school! He is a great role model. He has so much common sense and he always expected kids to behave.” Mark also admired the late Sue Jones, another teacher from C-LW who moved to Murray County Central. “Sue was a great role model too and she was certainly a champion for the underdog.”

Along with coaching, refereeing and umpiring, Mr. Carlson advised the MathCounts team for the past fourteen years. “Some schools only invite the top performing math students for their teams, but I always took anyone who was interested. Usually our team has 12-15 students and we’ve done very well. One year a ‘D’ student wanted to be on the team, and he worked hard and became a better math student.”

Mr. Carlson graciously acknowledges that he has always worked for excellent administrators and school boards and appreciates that our communities have always supported the school. He also states that though he won’t be a full-time teacher anymore, he’ll be a busy retiree. “I started a lawn care company several years ago - by accident - but it’s really grown! I’ll also continue to drive school bus routes and for activities and I’ll come to substitute teach or maybe even sub for another job at school. I also plan to expand my real estate business. But this feels like the right time. I want to take a day off once in a while and just enjoy some flexibility. And I want to leave while I still like teaching - my memories are still good.” Everyone who knows Mr. Carlson knows he has been a role model for many students because as he says, “Teaching is more important than math.” He has been truly one of the good ones.

For twenty-seven years Murray County Central custodian Bev Johnson has washed, swept, moved furniture, stocked supplies, facilitated repairs and kept everything in order at both the Central and West Elementary buildings. And always with a smile on her face! It wasn’t the work she expected to undertake, but she said, “The years went fast - I had fun.” Bev started her employment as a cook in the Chandler-Lake Wilson school district. But she agreed to help out with a few custodial tasks, continued through the summer and found she really enjoyed the job. “I only worked one year at Lake Wilson. That was when the meals were cooked in Slayton and I drove them over to Lake Wilson,” she explained. The first eleven years with MCC Bev staffed the night position in the high school building. “I liked the twelve-month schedule, but I did miss my kid’s away games. That was kind of frustrating. But then a day shift opened up, and about seven or eight years ago I switched to the West Elementary building.” Bev added that she likes the autonomy of knowing the tasks that need to be done and making her own schedule to accomplish those tasks. She has learned many skills through her years and is proud that she is part of a custodial team that makes many of the repairs themselves.

Bev admits she is ready for the more relaxed schedule of retirement, but she will miss the students. “I like being around kids,” Bev said, “and I will miss their hugs. I found myself doing more than cleaning - sometimes I was a counselor and helped solve problems. But I always tried to make my job fun.” Bev and her husband Myron plan to enjoy more time with their children and grandchildren and she plans to work as a substitute paraprofessional next year. Though the school staff will miss Bev’s custodial skills, they look forward to seeing her friendly face and working with her in a new capacity.