Posted 1 p.m. Wednesday, July 24, 2024
Jeanne Halderson, ’92 & ’97, recieves Altman Teacher Education Award
Jeanne Halderson is known for making an impact on students’ lives — an impact that extends much further than the nine months she has them in the classroom.
Take Kelsey Ferkingstad, who has fond memories as a student in Halderson’s seventh grade English language arts class nearly 20 years ago, and who now teaches with Halderson at Longfellow Middle School in La Crosse.
As a student, “I observed her to be an incredibly talented educator who fostered a love of reading amongst her students, including myself. I was so inspired by Mrs. Halderson that I began reading on my own for enjoyment, and my reading score increased by three grade levels that school year,” says Ferkingstad, a seventh grade math and science teacher. “Mrs. Halderson has become more than a former teacher to me. She has become a friend, a colleague and an inspiration for me as a teacher.”
Halderson’s commitment to making learning not only fun, but truly memorable for her students, is what has set her apart during her three decades in teaching, colleagues say. It’s also a key reason she was selected to receive this year’s Burt & Norma Altman Teacher Education Award, given to UWL alumni who go on to become outstanding educators, and who make significant contributions to the children, schools and communities they serve.
Halderson graduated from UWL with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 1992 and a master’s degree in reading in 1997. She began teaching at Longfellow Middle School in the fall of 1992 and has been there ever since.
Specializing in English language arts and social studies, Halderson has sought to create a student-centered environment that actively involves students in the learning process, and that incorporates content and media with special relevance to them.
In Halderson’s classroom, students have created podcasts and videos about trending topics, interviewed family members about their culture or military service, collected shoes for children in Africa, designed memes and political cartoons, and analyzed allusions in Taylor Swift songs.
An active member of the community, Halderson has also collaborated with local organizations to bring guest speakers with unique perspectives to her classroom.
For one project, called “The Road She Traveled,” her class partnered with La Crosse’s League of Women Voters to chronicle the stories of women in the community. The resulting biographies and documentaries were accepted by the La Crosse Public Library and UWL’s Murphy Library, where they can be accessed by patrons.
Elizabeth Ramsay, a seventh grade teacher at Longfellow, says Halderson puts tremendous amounts of thought and effort into helping lessons resonate with her students.
“Jeanne consistently goes above and beyond to deliver results,” Ramsay says, “which is evidenced by the many large-scale projects she has dreamed up, organized and turned into reality for her seventh grade students and our La Crosse community.”
Determined to teach English language arts beyond the traditional paper and pencil, Halderson has also been on the cutting edge of new technology.
In 2006, her class was featured in a New York Times article about the emergence of podcasting and its potential to enhance student learning. Halderson’s class had been producing a weekly variety show touching on everything from mealworm metamorphosis, to adding integers, to a classroom candy thief.
“Mrs. Halderson has been and continues to be tireless in her quest to aid our students and fellow educators with innovative uses of technology,” says Penny Reedy, a retired principal at Longfellow. “(She) is one of those charismatic and caring teachers whose passion for engaging students and increasing the efficacy of her craft is, to me, the hallmark of an unparalleled professional.”
Through the years, Halderson has shared her craft with countless teachers at state, national and global education conferences.
She has become a leader in her school and in her community, always advocating on behalf of young people.
And she has inspired generation after generation of students to create projects that result in not just a grade, but something with enduring value to themselves and the community.
But for Halderson, the connection she has formed with students has always mattered most. And it is through her students that her success as a teacher most truly shines.
“You took time to get to know us,” one former student wrote to her. “You actually cared about all your students. You let us into your life. I love that you saw our potential, every one of us, and you never accepted any less than our best.”
About Distinguished Alumni Awards
The UWL Alumni & Friends Foundation awarded graduates from the ’80s through 2015 its top alumni awards for 2024. They were honored for distinguished service and successful careers.
The distinguished alumni returned to campus in September to speak with students, take part in a panel discussion, and be formally recognized during a ceremony and brunch.
This year's recipients are:
- Graff Distinguished Alumni Award — Ronald Sentwali Bakari, '82 & ‘90
- Altman Teacher Education Alumni Award — Jeanne Halderson, '92 & '97
- Parker Distinguished Multicultural Alumni Award — Vickie Sanchez, '07
- Rada Distinguished Alumni Award — Amanda McAllister Novak, '12
- Morgan Improving Lives Alumni Award — Shaundel Spivey, '12 & '15