THE TIMES 

Nancy Bickelhaupt retires after 27 years in Waitsburg School District

As a life skills teacher, Nancy put her heart and soul into improving her students’ lives post high school

 

WAITSBURG—For Nancy Bickelhaupt, preparing students for life has been both a pleasure and a passion. The Waitsburg High School Family and Consumer Science teacher will retire this spring but will undoubtedly continue to make her mark on the community.

Nancy grew up in Walla Walla and graduated from Wa-Hi in 1972 before heading to Washington State University where she double-majored in home economics and education. She met Waitsburg farmer Dan Bickelhaupt and the couple married while she was still in college. They moved to Waitsburg and had two children, John and Anne, before Nancy returned to college to finish her one remaining class and receive her Bachelor of Science in Home Economics in 1984. The couple would later add a third child, Jill, to the family.

“I did my student teaching and everything, but I hadn’t finished an Econ 201 course,” Nancy said, laughing. “We started a family and I just never got around to finishing that course.”

With her degree in hand, Nancy began substitute teaching grades K-12, mostly in Waitsburg.

“It was always interesting because one day I would be on my knees with the first grade and the next day I would have seniors,” she said.

In the fall of 1992, Nancy was hired full-time to fill a home economics position vacated by Donnie Henderson.

Nancy taught junior high and high school, starting at half-time, then two-thirds time, and finally, full time. Bickelhaupt has taught Health and Life Management Skills, Foods and Nutrition, Interpersonal Relationships, Housing, Interiors and Furnishings, Human Development, Textiles and Apparel, and Personal Choices.

“I taught Health and Life Management Skills, which I let the students name when we started the first class, each year. Then I would alternate classes according to student interest so they could have different electives to choose from each year,” Nancy said.

An avid and perpetual learner, Nancy has pulled from different resources to create her curriculum which is “best of every world” for her students. Over the years, Nancy has written and received multiple grants to provide resources to enhance her programs.

The first “babies” her health students took home were made from wheat sacks. She later received grants for Baby Think it Over infant simulators and an empathy belly. She was also one of the early participants in the Gates grant program, which brought computers into her classroom.

“It’s the students that bring me back and make me work hard. I believe the subject matter is something that can help kids lead a better life beyond high school, to prepare them for living on their own. And that’s why I always throw my heart and soul into it,” Nancy said.

She said her favorite subject is Life Management Skills (financial literacy) because it changes lives. She makes heavy use of simulations in the class, such as renting and buying a home.

“Not only do I talk about it, but I have them go through the process of financing a house and they get it! They have to read the rental agreement. I use a lot of real-life documents,” she said.

Nancy said she is a huge believer in professional development, whether personally or through the school, and makes a point to keep updated with curriculum and education trends.

When her daughter Jill, who teaches family and consumer science at Pullman High School, decided to earn her master’s degree, Nancy joined her in the process. The pair received their degrees in 2013.

“It’s not like it used to be where you had to leave home to earn your degree. Dan encouraged me and I thought it was a really neat opportunity. It is pretty special to do something like that with your daughter; to walk together, be recognized together and be hooded together,” Nancy said.

Daughter Anne also followed Nancy’s educational footsteps and teaches history at Wa-Hi. Son John lives with his wife and three children in Pullman where he does web design and graphics.

“I just try to be a good teacher. I felt called to do this and I’ve put my heart and soul into it. It’s going to be hard to adjust,” Nancy said.

Nancy will be missed by her co-workers and students as well.

“Nancy and I were Ed Larsen’s last two hires in 1992. Because she was only half-time and the high school building housed grades 7-12, I didn’t have a classroom to call my own. So, Nancy and I shared the Family and Consumer Science room—I used the room in the morning and shuffled between other classroom later in the day and she used it in the afternoon. Since Nancy was so conscientious about creating a successful program, her half-time was really 7/8s time. Sharing this space allowed us to create a strong professional and personal relationship,” said fellow high school teacher Roseann Groom.

 “Professionally, she never stopped learning; whether it was at her professional organizations’ conferences (also serving as state president and state conference chair) or earning her Master’s degree. She also was a member of many committees within the district and served as an officer for the Waitsburg Teachers Organization. Nancy’s desire to create a program that would be useful to students once they left high school led to the creation of many successful classes: Life Management Skills (financial literacy); Personal Choices (basic life skills—ironing, sewing on a button, comparison shopping, etc.), Interpersonal Relationships (healthy relationships-with others and oneself), Foods and Nutrition (food science and food preparation), Textiles (learning about the different aspects of the use of fabrics and sewing machines), Health ( learning about physical and mental health for Freshmen) and Housing (interior design plus architecture). If your class was fortunate to have her as an activity advisor, all accomplishments were done at a level of excellence. She recently established FCCLA at Waitsburg High School for students interested in Family and Consumer Science activities. Nancy also hosted many Thanksgiving Feasts for the first grade and Senior Suppers for graduating students. Her classroom is the hub of our high school.

 “Over my many years being a part of the Waitsburg High School family, I have worked with the best teachers. However, it has been my honor and privilege to call Nancy Bickelhaupt my colleague, but most importantly, to be able to call her my friend,” Groom said.

“Nancy is an extremely dedicated teacher. She will be a real void in our school family,” said High School Administrator Denise Winnet.

“It has been an honor to work with Mrs. Bickelhaupt. She is a passionate educator, dedicated to our school district, students and community. It is with deepest appreciation for the years she has served our District that we wish her well in her new beginning. We hope her retirement is filled with happy memories of her 27 years serving Waitsburg School District,” said High School Principal Stephanie Wooderchak.

Upon retirement, Nancy plans to attend more of her grandchildren’s sporting events as well as Cougar football and basketball games. She and Dan also look forward to traveling and have already booked an Alaskan cruise.

But she also intends to continue using her skills to help others. She has already applied as a volunteer at Pullman High School so that she can help Jill with projects and has been approached about ways she may be able to help adults learn financial literacy, locally.

“What I hope students took away from my classes is that I truly cared about their quality of life beyond high school and that is why I worked so hard to teach them life skills,” Nancy said.

 

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