A nonprofit publication of the Kentucky Center for Public Service Journalism

Voices from Classroom: Colleagues, students sing praises of Kieri Toebbe on 32 years of teaching


By Amanda Klare
Beechwood Elementary School

In the world of education, quantitative data is a large part of the measurement of success. Student growth is constantly being analyzed by all stakeholders to make sure that students are showing adequate progress and mastering standards. But how does one begin to measure the impact that a teacher has had on a school and students’ lives over the course of one’s career? On the last day of her thirty-second year as a teacher at Beechwood Elementary, Mrs. Kierin “Kieri” Toebbe was able to find out just how much she means to the students, teachers, parents, and administration of the Beechwood community.

Kieri is not one who likes the spotlight; therefore, the assistant principal, Tonya Brummer just told her to “trust her” when she told Kieri that the administration would be doing something at the end of the year assembly to honor Kieri for her years of service to Beechwood. When Kieri walked in the doors to the gymnasium that morning, she was surprised to be greeted by her mom and dad and some of her seven siblings. Two of Kieri’s longtime teaching “dream team” members were there as well to honor their friend.

Mrs. Toebbe with Kate and Mckynlee Townsend

Mrs. Brummer started off the assembly talking about how Kieri made her feel welcome when she first came to Beechwood as a third-grade teacher four years prior. “Immediately, Mrs. Toebbe made me feel at home… within a week of knowing Mrs. Toebbe, I was sure about a few things: she loves her kids, she is passionate and dedicated to teaching, and she would probably end up being one of the kindest and most caring individuals I would ever meet.”

Tonya Brummer continued to talk about Kieri but through the lens of her role of the assistant principal. “Her car is usually the first in the parking lot and the last to leave and she wouldn’t have it any other way.” She thanked Kieri for her dedication to nearly 1,000 students and families over her thirty-two years at Beechwood.

Long-time colleague, Peggy Lorenz spoke from the heart about her teaching partner of twenty-eight years. Peggy got choked up as she said, “There are no words…you can’t even describe her dedication and her love for Beechwood, for her students, for her friends and her family.” Peggy went on to say that Kieri is simply amazing and welcomed her to the world of retirement.

Another individual to speak about Miss Burns/Mrs. Toebbe (Miss Burns was Kieri’s maiden name) was a member of her first third-grade classroom, Katie Burnett Townsend. Katie reminisced on memories from the year she had spent as a student in “Miss Burns’ room” including learning cursive and her field trip to Shakertown. The thing Katie said she remembers most vividly is the connection she had with Miss Burns as a student. Katie went on to say, “But the coolest part about all of this is that now my daughter, Mckynlee, is in Mrs. Toebbe’s class the last year of her teaching…I was privileged to be your first chapter and Mckynlee is your last. But all stories come to an end, and as you finish this story, just remember how special you are and how many lives you have touched over these 30 plus years.”

Two former students, Meredith Ruhland, and Tanya Shoyat who are now in high school then took the microphone to talk about their old third-grade teacher. Meredith explained to the audience just how much Mrs. Toebbe impacted her in the third grade and how she is still close with her today. Meredith told several stories about Mrs. Toebbe, including one about recess.

“Most of our class decided to play knockout on the basketball court. It was mostly boys playing so I was worried about it even though — if you didn’t know — I really like basketball. But to my surprise, Mrs. Toebbe joined in the game, and was winning! To little third grade me, it was just the coolest thing ever. From then on, I played in every knockout game and every single football game up until my last recess, even though I was often the only girl out there. I owe that to Mrs. Toebbe because she was one of the first people to show me that ‘hey, girls can play too.’ And so, when Mrs. Toebbe brought me to my first women’s college basketball game, I was once again reminded ‘hey, girls can play too.’ Every now and then, when I’m playing in a basketball game up here, I’ll look up at the stands and see Mrs. Toebbe watching. And in my heart, I know that she truly believes in me and I remember that no matter who is on the court, I can play and I can compete.” Tanya Shoyat had come to Mrs. Toebbe’s class having moved into the country with little English in her vocabulary. She spoke of the extra efforts that Mrs. Toebbe took to help her learn English, but most importantly, how she made her feel loved and welcomed.

Kieri Tobbe with Meredith Ruhland and Tanya Shoyat

Next up to sing Mrs. Toebbe’s praises was fifth-grade student Maya Gehlhoff. Maya talked about the relationships and connections that Mrs. Toebbe makes with all of her students. Maya talked about the postcards that Mrs. Toebbe would send to her students over the summer from the different National Parks she was visiting with her family. As Maya spoke about Mrs. Toebbe, the two made eye contact and the audience could see the emotions come over both Maya and Mrs. Toebbe as they both have a deep respect for one another as people.

Beechwood’s high school chorus, including some former students of Mrs. Toebbe, sang a song about coming home. As Mrs. Brummer said, Mrs. Toebbe will always have a home at Beechwood.

This all led to Mrs. Toebbe sharing her last words to the crowd. One could hear a pin drop in the audience as Mrs. Toebbe engaged all of the students, kindergarten through sixth grade as she drove home the message of the importance of being kind to one another. She spoke of her love for Beechwood since she attended her entire elementary and high school years as a student there and was lucky enough to teach at Beechwood her entire career. Mrs. Toebbe led the school in a collective chant of “We are…Beechwood” and there was not a dry eye in the stands from her students and her peers.

The testimonies of these colleagues, parents, and students show us the qualitative data we need to prove that Mrs. Toebbe had a positive impact on the entire Beechwood community; her career was an absolute success.  Beechwood is eternally grateful for her commitment to her students, her peers, and the entire school district.

Mrs. Kieri Toebbe, you are…Beechwood.

Amanda Klare is a 4th grade National Board Certified Teacher at Beechwood Elementary. She is a 2018-2019 Kentucky Hope Street Group fellow. Amanda was recognized as a 2019 Valvoline Award winner and semi-finalist for the 2019 Kentucky Teacher of the Year.  


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