LHS has a long history, first opening on October 16, 1965, which was over 55 years ago. Along with all those years, changes come not only to the school but to the teachers. LHS teacher Sarah Wintersheidt has been teaching at LHS for 30 years.
Winterscheidt teaches Drawing I, Drawing II, AP Drawing, AP 2D Design, Photo I, Photo II, Exploring Visual Arts and Independent Study. Prior to working at LHS, Winterscheidt worked at Huron High School for three years and started the photography department which led to all the high schools coming here to learn about photography. During the summer, Winterscheidt teaches at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Winterscheidt’s passion for art is what allows her to keep on teaching.
Teaching is a career that is widely overlooked, yet vital for future generations. However, every teacher has different reasons for becoming a teacher.
“My biggest influence was my mom as she was a teacher and as my grandmother was a teacher. I have a passion for art but people recharge my battery. So, this is a great way for me to be around people and also have the art aspect that I love,” said Winterscheidt. “I couldn’t imagine being an artist in a business where I wouldn’t have all that communication with people.”
Deciding how long someone wants to work depends on many factors such as the subject, school, students and more. For Winterscheidt, all those factors have led up to her working for as long as she has, and as long as she will.
“If you [had] asked me if I was going to be a teacher: absolutely, positively not, no way. I did not think I would ever be teaching for this long, [and] it’s weird [because] sometimes it feels like I just started again,” said Winterscheidt. “I love to evolve as students evolve, to the best of my ability.”
Deciding what to do after teaching can be difficult for some teachers, but Winterscheidt has her mind set on what she would like to do.
“I would probably work for Habitat for Humanity because it is a beautiful organization, and I would work for Jimmy Carter and his foundation,” said Winterscheidt, “I really believe that young children, especially young children with needs should be read to, so I know when I retire that’s something I want to do because those formative years are essential in building confidence.”
Enrolling in a class that is new and different from one’s personal likes is a great way to find out if that class is something someone is interested in. Winterscheidt offers different classes that everyone is eligible to take.
“Everybody’s welcome. I think that everybody has that potential to express themselves,” said Winterscheidt.
LHS Longest Working Teachers:
- Charnelle Wooledge, 26 years
- Kathy Ferguson, 25 years
- Mario Chiarello, 25 years
- James Jarovski, 25 years
- Josh Smith, 25 years
- Kaaren Huber, 25 years
- Dan Carlson, 24 years
- Sara Klawonn, 23 years
- Joni Bushfield, 22 years
- Brian Bechard, 21 years
- Scott Bakken, 21 years
- Karen Wunder, 20 years
