Jensen, Huikko voted 'Best of Delano'

Posted on: Nov 20, 2019

When readers of the Delano Herald Journal finished casting their votes for favorite teacher in the 2019 Best of Delano feature, two from Delano Elementary School stood above the rest.

Meredith Huikko and Nicole Jensen tied for first place, an honor that both said reflected well on their school and their colleagues, past and present.

“I was hired here as my first job, but I also attended school K-12 here,” said Huikko, a kindergarten teacher who is in her 20th year at DES. “I had those teachers that really made me feel a part of the classroom, who made school a good place to be. So I kind of feel like I owe it back to the community to give the same as what I received.”

Jensen said she now teaches in the same first-grade room where she did her student teaching under the mentoring of Kathy Workman.

“In my 12 years, there are a lot of teachers that have retired. We have some big shoes to fill,” said Jensen. “We can do it, and we want the next generation of teachers cycling in to look at us and go, ‘Wow, they put in so much effort.’ That’s how we remember it, and we want to continue that legacy.”

Huikko added that she had John Bingea as her fourth-grade teacher when Bingea was a rookie, and when she started teaching in Delano her classroom was next to Bingea’s.

“To have him as a mentor for my first year of teaching was just amazing, because he was one of the teachers I idolized and was part of what drove me to want to be a teacher,” Huikko said. “I wanted my classroom to have that same feeling and atmosphere that his did.”

While past colleagues provided inspiration and mentorship, Jensen and Huikko said their current peers are helpful in the same way.

“Everybody works so hard here,” said Jensen. 

“And it’s collaborative,” added Huikko. “It’s not just, ‘This is my room so this is what I do that works.’ There is definitely a whole lot of sharing to make each other better. It really does drive you to make yourself better when you’re working with such wonderful people.”

Favorite aspects of the job
While the community recognition provided a boost of affirmation, Jensen and Huikko said their enthusiasm for the job is renewed every morning as their students arrive. Both teachers embrace the opportunity to serve their students holistically.

“We can teach academics and standards and all these sorts of things. But it also sometimes involves helping with hygiene, helping with hair or those types of things,” said Jensen. “You’re kind of a teacher and mom and caretaker. You teach them to be kind to people and to work hard, and they want to do it.”

“They want to learn. Sometimes those other things need to happen first,” said Huikko. 

Both teachers said the support of families has been outstanding, and that the rapid progress their students make in kindergarten and first grade is both gratifying and motivating.

“What’s fun, especially in early elementary, is you see more of those ‘aha’ moments,” said Huikko. “That light bulb above their head, you can see that come on in the look on their face.”

“You don’t have to wait all year to see the progress,” added Jensen. “The growth they make month by month and week by week, it’s continuous.”

The bottom line is that Jensen and Huikko aim to make their students’ school experience the best it can possibly be.

“I feel like I’m successful if I make them enjoy coming to school and want to be here,” said Huikko. “The learning will happen. If they don’t like coming here, then the learning is not going to happen.”

While accolades are appreciated, Jensen said the feedback from students means more than anything.

“I got a letter just last week that said, ‘Dear Mrs. Jensen, I love coming to school because you make it feel like home.’ That gave me chills. That’s what I want,” she said. “We want this to be a place they love.”
 

Post Categories: Elementary School