Rosemary McDunn, who recently retired from Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes Middle School, has also published two books, including “The Green Coat, A Tale From the Dust Bowl Years.”
Rosemary McDunn
As a junior high student at Our Lady of La Salette Grade School in Berkley, Rosemary McDunn helped the nuns who taught her with their Saturday catechism classes.
“They would send me off with two or three students at a time, sometimes four or five, and they would ask me to teach them a prayer, or something about their Catholic faith. And I loved it,” she reflected. The deal was sealed when “they gave me a piece of chalk to write on the board, and I thought it was the most incredible thing, that I was allowed to teach.”
Earning her teaching degree at Wayne State University, she returned to Our Lady of La Salette, where she led her own classroom for four years. After a two-decade teaching sabbatical to help run a family business, she joined the staff of Waterford’s Our Lady of the Lakes in 2000, as a middle school teacher, from which she retired this spring.
In addition to teaching social studies, religion, science and life skills, and moderating the National Junior Honor Society, she also wrote her second book. Published by Bezalel Books and available through Amazon.com, “The Green Coat, A Tale From the Dust Bowl Years” is a historical fiction inspired by her family’s experiences during that era.
“My mother was suffering from Alzheimer’s, and sharing her stories allowed me to capture her life in a way that would teach and instruct my students about that era, and also serve as a tribute to my mother.”
Embraced by her students and their parents, “The Green Coat” has since been incorporated into a number of curriculums, and is popular with home school educators. While her retirement has been busy, McDunn does not rule out writing another book, or other opportunities that allow her to educate. “You should never stop learning, one way or another, through the institutions or on your own,” she said. “Continually improving yourself as a person, and a thinker, is important.”
Reflecting on the path her life has taken so far, “I will admit, it seemed a little strange to me that we had a hand in two very different types of businesses, but we were doing interesting things.”
Although she admits it wasn’t part of any long-term plan, “We went full circle; all the while we were out there doing something, teaching, that makes a difference. It has meant so much to us, to be able to live and share our faith and our talents. It has been incredible, to do things you enjoy, and that you are passionate about. I am so thankful.”
Mark Gagnon, a science teacher and coach at Novi Detroit Catholic Central, is currently working to develop a digital curriculum for the science department.Mark Gagnon
Mark Gagnon began his 30th year as a teacher at Catholic Central High School on Aug. 13. The Archdiocese of Detroit High School Teacher of the Year for 2014, Gagnon was selected as Catholic Central’s nominee through a vote by the entire CC faculty.
“It was very humbling,” he remarked. “I work with incredible people at Catholic Central, and it was an honor to be chosen by my peers.”
As head of the science department, Gagnon has spearheaded the effort to move the department to a digital curriculum.
“It is valuable to use primary information; by the time it gets to a textbook and printed, it is already outdated,” he said. “I can have an article published today as part of the curriculum tomorrow.”
He also has played a pivotal role in the school’s technology integration team, which helped the school develop and implement a 1:1 iPad program for the entire student body.
Science was his passion as an undergraduate student at Eastern Michigan University, where the Alpena native earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. His post-graduate challenge was to find employment that would use that knowledge.
“I had an undergraduate degree in biology, and did not know what to do with it,” Gagnon said. “Teaching was not in my plan, but once I got into it, I realized it was where I belonged. I love it, and I love to go to work every day. It is a real treat for me.”
Gagnon’s enthusiasm and passion for teaching aren’t limited to science. He has served as a coach for the school throughout his career — including golf, lacrosse, football and basketball — and also established several clubs to bring more young men into the fold.
“Currently, we have the shotgun club and the archery club. This will be our fifth year for the shotgun, and second for archery,” he said, in addition to a 17-year-old backpacking club he started. “What I like about those clubs is that it gives our students other opportunities to find their niche. Not everyone is an athlete. They might not be a fit for the band, or a great debater. They might find their niche in the great outdoors.”
Gagnon leads a yearly camping expedition in which students and adults spend several days hiking and fending for themselves, using the experience to encounter God directly through nature.
After three decades in the classroom, he can state with experience that, “You are not going to be rich being a teacher, but you are going to have an opportunity to contribute, and give back to society. And that makes it all worthwhile, and why I enjoy every day.”
Kathleen Kozlowski Okray is a freelance writer.
