Miss Edie Bishop

As a youngster, I lived with my parents and five siblings on a Saginaw County farm four miles east of Chesaning, Michigan. I graduated from New Lothrop High School many years ago. I attended Delta College near Bay City, and then transferred to Central Michigan University. I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Special Education of the Mentally Impaired in 1984. With this degree, I am certified to teach K-8 elementary general education classes and K-12 special education classes. I have been teaching for 15 years.

My first teaching job was in Huron County, which is located in Michigan's thumb. I taught six years at Saints Peter and Paul Elementary School in the little town of Ruth. Ruth is located approximately nine miles west of Lake Huron between Harbor Beach and Ubly. I lived three of those years in a tiny cottage along Lake Huron about six miles south of Harbor Beach.

In 1990, I was hired by the Manistee Intermediate School District to teach special education classes at Onekama Middle School. In 1994, the special education teachers at Onekama became official Onekama Consolidated Schools employess. In 1992, I received my Masters of Arts in Elementary Administration from Central Michigan University. In 1996, I earned a technology certificate from Michigan State University.

The following factors helped influence my decision to become a teacher. When I was a little girl and played “school” with my brothers and cousins, I was always elected to be the teacher. During my sixth grade year, the principal of my school suggested I should consider becoming a teacher. Then during my senior year in high school, I had the opportunity to work as a teacher's aide in a third grade classroom for three hours each morning.

My goal as a teacher is to help each student attain skills that will enable him or her to be a happy, productive citizen. Courtesy, preparation for class, and a willingness to try to do the very best each day are traits I look for in my students. My pet peeve in school is a student who doesn't have respect for others, other people's property, or themselves.