Another amazing teachers saying good-bye is eighth grade special education teacher Donna Kling. Kling will be retiring after 37 years of inspiring kids.
“I always enjoyed school and I had some really good teachers and thought I want to do that for kids. I had friends who were like, “I don’t really like school,” and I was like, “School can be pretty cool.”
Kling said she had a friend when she was young who had down syndrome, and she thought there was nothing different about her. Then, she and her friend went somewhere together, and she saw how her friend was treated, and that really bothered her. So, that’s why she went to teach special education.
Being very experienced, Kling has taught elementary, middle school and high school, but she really likes the middle school. She enjoys the chaos of it. The little bit that it’s never the same. She is also very attached to this building after making so many impacts on people.
“My favorite thing about teaching is the connections with students and other teachers, other staff and running into kids that I had 35 years ago and still see them around. They remember, and it’s like you made an impact,” said Kling.
In her retirement, Kling will be looking forward to not completing so much paperwork.
McKenna Koeck • May 17, 2024 at 8:30 am
What inspired her to become a special education teacher is so sweet. People really shouldn’t look at others differently just because they have special needs or disabilities. Special education teachers don’t get enough recongnition, their jobs can be really hard! I know because my mother worked for children and adults with special needs for years, and it could get tough!