Rexwinkel retires from teaching at LCMS - Le Mars Daily Sentinel

Le Mars Community Middle School family and consumer science teacher Lorene Rexwinkel will retire this spring, ending 23 years in the district, and a 42-year teaching career. She is a promoter of family and consumer sciences in the classroom and the community.

A teacher with more than 40 years in the classroom, 23 of them in Le Mars, will hang up her apron and retire this month.

Lorene Rexwinkel, Le Mars Community Middle School family and consumer science (FACS) teacher, will check the kitchens one final time next week, making sure all is ready for someone else to oversee next fall.

"I've been thinking about it for a while," Rexwinkel said of her retirement.

However, she admits she caught even Superintendent Dr. Todd Wendt and middle school principal Steve Shanks by surprise.

"I had no idea her request to meet with me was about her retirement," Wendt said. "Mrs. Rexwinkel has been an excellent employee and teacher in the district for a long time."

In his 12 years as superintendent, Wendt said he found Rexwinkel to be a very professional educator very willing to provide leadership and assistance with school district activities, not only in the middle school but district wide.

"She is our only National Board Certified teacher. That is a rigorous process to go through and we are very proud of her for that," Wendt said.

Rexwinkel's professionalism carried through in all that she did in the district, he said.

"We will miss Mrs. Rexwinkel in a lot of different ways, not only in middle school FACS, but adult education coordinator, and as a good member of our team at the school district," Wendt said.

Rexwinkel's resignation was approved by the school board May 7.

"I just decided that it was time to kick back and try something else," Rexwinkel said.

She graduated from Iowa State University in 1969 with a bachelor's degree in home economics education.

The program was later changed to family and consumer science (FACS).

Rexwinkel's teaching career started at Maurice-Orange City where she taught one year. She did substitute teaching in the Le Mars Community School District in the 1970s, and spent seven years at St. Mary's in Remsen teaching FACS.

Her first year in the Le Mars district she taught middle school social studies, then moved to FACS for her 23 years in the district.

That adds up to 42 years in the classroom.

"Yes, it's been a long time," Rexwinkel said.

Her classes this year included sixth grade exploratory and seventh grade exploratory, with a new group of students, both girls and boys, coming in every nine weeks.

In the sixth grade, she covered basic nutrition, food safety, measurements, following a recipe, putting a simple recipe together and focusing on teamwork and getting along with people.

There was also a unit on personal care, laundry and a simple sewing project.

Seventh grade students spent three weeks learning to use the sewing machine, making two sewing projects. They also have approximately 3 1/2 weeks of nutrition.

"This year we concentrated on the My Plate model and added exercise to it," Rexwinkel said.

The last 2 1/2 weeks of the quarter was a human development unit focusing on relationships and adolescence.

The eighth grade curriculum, she added, includes topics such as banking and consumerism, a cleaning unit and sewing a garment.

"The classes are definitely about life skills. It prepares students," Rexwinkel said.

She said she made a good choice when she went to college, adding she always wanted to be a home economics teacher.

"I really like my students; I've enjoyed working with them," Rexwinkel said.

She added in some ways teaching has gotten tougher. too.

"You don't always have the parental backing as in the past," she said.

Some students don't forget their FACS teacher.

"I have a lot of good friendships formed over the years with former students," she said.

Rexwinkel said she sees several of her students from her St. Mary's days quite often.

"I had lunch with one of my students and he asked me if I remembered when we made lobster," Rexwinkel said.

The student wanted to know how to prepare lobster, and bought a live lobster at Hy-Vee and brought it to class, she recalled.

"I had to get the book out because I hadn't done it before either," Rexwinkel said. "That student says he still talks about that class."

The teacher said a highlight of her career was getting her National Board Certification in 2004.

That program requires nearly a year's worth of time and effort from teachers interested in improving their teaching practices. Candidates devote between 200 and 400 hours of work and develop a portfolio that is judged by trained peers at the national level.

Rexwinkel was named Iowa Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year in 2009, an award that honors not only her teaching record but her professional involvement and community leadership.

In 2004, she was honored with the Helen LeBaron Hilton Recognition by Iowa State University's College of Family and Consumer Sciences.

That award recognized outstanding community leadership, leadership in the university's alumni association, and her extensive contributions in the field of education.

"Somebody said I just live and breath FACS, and I'll probably still do that. It's kinda been my life," Rexwinkel said.

She wrote a monthly article on FACS for the school newsletter, keeping patrons up on what was happening in the program.

"I always think that's important, you have to promote so people know about your program," she said.

She won't leave the profession behind in retirement.

Rexwinkel will continue with her Delta Kappa Gamma group, a teachers society and professional group she's been a member of since 1992. She will serve as president of the group this year and will attend the state convention in June.

"I plan to always stay with my FACS club," she added.

That local group is comprised of women who majored or minored in home economics or family and consumer science.

Rexwinkel admits making the decision to retire was a tough one.

Now she's busy with paperwork and packing and cleaning her classrooms.

"It will be tough for me to leave, but I'm already adjusting to it," she said.

"I'm going to miss all the people I've worked with, all the principals, superintendents and the staff. I've had good relationships through the years."

In addition to her teaching position, Rexwinkel has also resigned her position as adult education coordinator, which comprises putting together classes, teachers and students for the Western Iowa Tech Community College adult education classes. She has already prepared the fall 2012 program.

Rexwinkel's already looking forward to volunteering in her church.

She will also once again be the voice of "Around the Fair" on KLEM radio, interviewing 4-H'ers during the Plymouth County Fair.

There will also be more time to spend with her family. Rexwinkel and her husband, John, have three children and five grandchildren. Daughter Jill Eberle and her husband, Dan, live in Bloomington, Ind. Daughter Jane and her husband, Darrin Arnold, live in Remsen. Son Dan and his wife, Lori, live in Akron.

She'll also spend some time with aunts and uncles who live in Sioux Center and John's father, 92, who lives in Orange City.

"Maybe I'll come back and substitute teach, I don't know," she reflected.

Rexwinkel said she's keeping the retirement hoopla low-key.

"I think I'll just silently walk out of here," she said.

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