Briesemeister was a 'priceless asset'

Posted on: Jun 20, 2019

For nearly four decades, Gwen Briesemeister spurred high-performing students to greater heights through engaging challenges and opportunities.

With her retirement this summer after 39 total years in education and 21 years as the gifted and talented teacher in Delano, local instruction for advanced students will be entering a new era.

“I always tried to make sure that our program was parallel to the programs that were much larger than ours in school districts with more personnel,” said Briesemeister. “And I think the things we have here are very much the same programs that are offered in [those larger districts].”

Throughout her career, Briesemeister stayed involved with state and national professional organizations like the Minnesota Educators Gifted and Talented Board, and the Department of Education’s Gifted and Talented Advisory Board, so she brought a broad perspective of expertise to her work in Delano.

“You get to know through those things what the gold standard is and what is happening in other districts,” she said. 

Her energy in applying that knowledge to the benefit of students in the classroom – and other staff members – was something that multiple colleagues attested to.

“I can best describe Gwen as a human dynamo,” said sixth-grade teacher Natalie Palmer. “During the past six years I worked with Gwen, I found her to be innovative, enthusiastic, and fun-loving as she challenged students and staff to stretch themselves to achieve at higher levels.”

Jessica Benker, a fifth-grade teacher who said she felt fortunate to have team-taught with Briesemeister for a number of years, agreed.

“Gwen’s love of teaching and passion to inspire her students is irreplaceable,” Benker said. “I do not think anyone could truly keep up with all of the programs and classes Gwen established in Delano. She created a lasting impression (in) her students’ lives to continuously strive to be the best they can be.”

A love for school
Briesemeister grew up in Hoffman and graduated with a class of 27 fellow students before heading to Moorhead for college with the intention of becoming a music teacher. After her first year she decided she would rather enjoy music informally than make it her career, and switched to elementary education.

“I always liked school, and still do,” Briesemeister said. “I liked being a student and I liked college. I just always thought I was going to be a teacher.”
Her first job was teaching upper elementary and advanced students on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota, a location she settled into for the next 10 years.

“It turned out to be quite an adventure,” she said. “If you wanted to be the kind of teacher to try new things, you definitely had the opportunity. There was a lot of funding at that time, so you could really do anything you wanted. We once took a field trip and flew on an airplane from Bismarck to Fargo. It was only $36 for a round trip. I thought it was great.”

Shaping a program
When her husband took a job in Minneapolis, Briesemeister moved back to Minnesota and taught gifted and talented students at Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted and Rockford before she saw an advertisement for a full-time gifted and talented position in Delano. The Delano program was inactive at the time, so she had the opportunity to shape it the way she liked.

She did so with a variety of fun and memorable programs, including Mall Madness, Battle of the Books, CSpan, Math Masters, History Day, Writer’s Workshop, AP testing and more. One of her personal favorites was the Inventors Fair.

“Some of the stuff students would come up with was fascinating and hilarious and creative and useful and useless. I loved it,” Briesemeister said. “It was so open-ended and it didn’t necessarily focus on just gifted learners.”

Another favorite for Briesemeister was History Day and the opportunity to work with sixth- and eighth-graders on substantial research projects. 

“It’s amazing what they can do as eighth-graders, the amount of research they do and how they can analyze and organize and plan,” said Briesemeister. “I wish that (grade-level) teachers would be able to see the growth these kids have made in just two years. And they amaze me every year, the things that they can talk about in terms of their topic. They truly are experts in their area when they are all done with that project.”

Fourth-grade teacher Cay Griep, herself a former gifted and talented instructor for a different district, said Briesemeister carried a “wealth of information” that benefitted everyone around her. 

“She is easy to work with and strives to provide a plethora of opportunities, resources, and ideas for all students to succeed,” said Griep. “Our (gifted and talented program) has an amazing foundation because of her.”

Teresa Campbell worked with Briesemeister on the History Day project as part of her Advanced Reading class in sixth grade this year, and said Briesemeister was a “priceless asset.”

“I consider myself one of the lucky and blessed few who got a glimpse of her expertise and I am forever grateful,” Campbell said.

Time to move on
Briesemeister worked with students in K-12 up until this year, when Angela Kalthoff took over the gifted and talented K-3 program. How did Briesemeister keep up with so many different age groups over the years?

“You get on your hamster wheel in the fall and keep going until you can jump off in the spring,” she said with a laugh. 

Was it a difficult decision to hop off the hamster wheel for good?

“It is,” said Briesemeister. “People say congratulations, but I’m kind of 50-50 on it. I still like doing what I’m doing. I still have ideas. I still enjoy looking for new curriculum units or new projects, but I think it’s time to move on to other activities I like to do that have been on the back burner. I’d like to put a little more attention on those things.”

One of Briesemeister’s top objectives in retirement is to spend more time creating documentaries, which she has previously entered in film festivals and plans to do again. Past projects focused on ordinary people doing extraordinary things, like a woman in Monticello who helped make the area a mecca for trumpeter swans, or the individual who created the Little Free Library movement.

DHS language arts teacher Heidi O’Donnell, who will succeed Briesemeister as the gifted and talented teacher for grades 4-8, has the last word.

“The students would say she’s an amazing teacher. We’d say she irreplaceable,” said O’Donnell. “She’s one of those people who can find potential in not only anyone, but in any opportunity. She strives to make a difference not only in our school but in our community. … So to an educator who has inspired so many to reach for their dreams, we wish that for Gwen in her retirement.”  

Post Categories: Elementary School, High School, Intermediate School