Knapke retiring from FR elementary (11/22/06)

For 35 years teaching has been Nancy Knapke's passion. But in just a few days she's going to walk away from it and concentrate on her other loves - like her rose bushes, her reading, and her family.

Nancy Knapke, principal of Fort Recovery's Elementary School for the past 17 years and only elementary principal at the new Fort Recovery Elementary School is retiring on Nov. 30.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," Knapke said anxiously in a recent interview. "It's going to be so abrupt."

There won't be any more mornings of blow drying her always-stylish hair, no putting on fashionable clothing that always includes high-heeled shoes. She's trading them in for sweatpants and sweatshirts.

"I can't wait," she said with an eager laugh. "I wake up in the night with leg cramps, and I wonder if it's not from being in high heels for sometimes 14 hours."

Explaining that with the Ohio school system, 35 years is a watershed point. "It's the goal of educators," she said, "and if I didn't do it now, when would I do it?"

It was early spring this year when Knapke talked with Fort Recovery Local Schools' superintendent, Dave Riel about her pending retirement.

"I asked him how long he needed to know ahead," she recalled. "He said, 'Two months, but I don't want to hear about it until then.'"

There was never any doubt in the young Nancy Meiring's mind. She had three goals for her life - get married, have a family, and be a school teacher.

After graduating from Fort Recovery High School in 1961, and with a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Dayton in her hand in 1964, at the young age of 19, she found herself with a brief full-time teaching position in a Madison Township school near Dayton.

It was a monumental year for the young woman. In addition to earning her degree, she married her high school sweetheart, Dick Knapke; the family-oriented couple returned to Fort Recovery; and they both secured teaching positions at the same school. He took a job as junior high math teacher, and she was hired as a fifth grade teacher at the former Sharpsburg Elementary School.

While teaching, Knapke also continued her education to earn a master's degree in education from Ball State University.

Two of her goals had now been achieved, and after teaching for a few more years, the couple turned their thoughts toward raising a family.

For the next eight years, Knapke became a stay-at-home mom with the children she and her husband had so fondly anticipated, only substitute teaching on occasion.

"Parenting combines with being a mom," she said.

The first to arrive was Kathy in 1976, followed by Bill, and Bob, and in 1979 while she was expecting the couple's fourth child, Virginia, her husband was fatally injured in a boating accident.

Now a single mother with four small children, Knapke decided to remained at home with her family.

"My children needed me now," she recalled, and with the steadfastness that has guided her life, said, "I'm strong. I can battle this."

When young Virginia entered school, Knapke began again to think about her future in education. "I don't like to look back. It's too painful, you know? I'm always thinking ahead... I knew I was going to go back," she said.

The course of education had changed in the years she had been away, and for the next few years while she taught at various grade levels during the day, she enrolled in evening courses at Wright State University in Celina.

"I wanted to be refreshed," she said.

Looking to the future and considering the possibility of taking on an administrative position at some point, she continued on to earn a degree in administration and supervision.

It was 1987, and the school district was looking for its first elementary principal. Knapke applied for the position and was turned down. Undeterred she returned to her fourth grade classroom teaching spot.

"They had never had anyone with that title," she said of the position, remembering that a designated coordinator watched over the St. Peter, West and Sharpsburg elementary schools.

In 1989, as the school district moved toward change, the school board sought her out and asked if she would still be interested in taking on the newly-created principal's position.

"I loved teaching, but to have an impact it needed to come from administration. I cared passionately about the community and the school," she said about the system where her own children were now students.

Knapke immersed herself into the school district's efforts at educating the students and implementing the changes.

"Education affects the whole community. If the schools are good, so is the community," she said.

Among her goals as she took her new position was to keep teachers abreast of the changes and possibilities available to provide better education.

"But it's been a team effort," she said of the quality of teachers now impacting the lives of Fort Recovery students. "There is strong building leadership and respect of all the staff."

The first accomplishment under her guidance was bringing the West Elementary and Sharpsburg Elementary students together in one building in an effort to provide better education to all the students.

Another in those early years was securing a $5,000 grant through the Effective Schools Process in 1989.

"You'd have thought we died and went to heaven," she said of the competitive money awarded to schools which achieve seven elements of effective education. "It opened the doors for us for school improvement. We're continually working toward excellence."

The school continues to apply for and receive the annual grant, Knapke said of the quality education offered to the students.

Knapke continued to work with staff and teachers to better educate them in delivering the high standards of education she wanted students to receive.

Other awards the staff secured under her leadership included the Best Practice Award, another recognition from the state.

"It was a wonderful moment. We bought everyone T-shirts," she said of the award. "It was an outstanding moment."

Knapke's always quick to point to the "team effort" for the school's success in education, but in 1996, she was honored by the Ohio Department of Education for her single-handed service and was presented with the Milikin Award, an award that gives public recognition and a financial reward to outstanding kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, principals, and other education professionals who make contributions to education.

She was one of only two Ohio educators selected for the award that along with state recognition brought a $25,000 reward.

"It was the epitome of my career," she said, and laughed as she added, "I bought a tractor with it."

But as she continued to immerse herself in education, the accountability efforts placed on schools by Ohio's educational guidelines also continued to mount.

"There's a lot of accountability, and accountability is good. It's caused us to do a better job educating the students," she explained. "However, it's difficult, if not impossible to still do all the things that are expected."

Nowadays Knapke may be found at the school long after the building has emptied catching up on written communications and planning for further staff development.

There are many 14-hour days and many weekends that find her working on ways to make education for Fort Recovery elementary students even better.

Will she now be spending more time with grandchildren?

Probably not.

"I won't see as much of them as I want," she said jokingly of six of her eight grandchildren currently attending the elementary school.

"Hi Grandma," one said as he opened the office door at the end of the school day.

Also on her agenda will be offering grandparenting services to daughter, Kathy Gonzalez, who lives with her husband and three sons on the east side of Knapke's rural Fort Recovery farm, and son, Bill Knapke who with his wife and four children live on the west side. Bob and his family, including one child, resides in Lebanon, Ohio, and daughter, Virginia Ranly calls Philadelphia, Pa., her home.

While Knapke's career has had her deeply involved in the education of students, she's also found time to be actively involved in the Fort Recovery community as well, like serving as the general chairman of the community's 1991 elaborate bicentennial extravaganza.

For her community efforts throughout the years she has earned Hall of Fame, Citizen of the Year, Achievement Award, and Distinguished Alumni awards.

"I'm passionate about anything I do," she said, adding she would also be finding more time to be involved in community activities as well as activities at Wright State University.

"I have a whole head full of ideas, but it's time for someone else to take over," she said about retiring. "The last six years have been totally life consuming."[[In-content Ad]]