{"id":9807,"date":"2024-08-21T13:37:54","date_gmt":"2024-08-21T18:37:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/education\/?p=9807"},"modified":"2026-04-20T13:18:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T18:18:16","slug":"recent-uwm-alum-wins-state-outstanding-student-teacher-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/education\/recent-uwm-alum-wins-state-outstanding-student-teacher-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Recent UWM Alum Wins State Outstanding Student Teacher Award\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Jenny Rudd didn\u2019t have to look far for an inspiration to go into teaching. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy mom is a teacher. I\u2019ve been influenced by her growing up, and have been lucky in knowing I wanted to teach my whole life.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English chose UWM alumna Rudd for the 2024 Outstanding Student Teacher Award. Rudd, who graduated from the School of Education in May, will be honored at the council\u2019s annual convention in October.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teaching creative writing to diverse group<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Pulaski has a diverse student body, with students coming from more than 20 countries, collectively speaking 25 different languages.  
 
Teaching creative writing to students who came in knowing little or no English was challenging, Rudd said, but her cooperating teacher and the supportive staff helped her meet those challenges. \u201cMy cooperating teacher (Bridget Spoerri) really pushed me to be independent, and the students were so fun.\u201d  
 
\u201cWe basically navigated the language issues by having the students write in their native language, then work with us on translation.\u201d The teachers also allowed extra time for students who weren\u2019t native speakers, the opportunity to use a Spanish-English dictionary if Spanish was their first language, and offered the option of using Google translate. \u201cWe did have a very diverse group, so there were a number of languages my students could speak, which is amazing,\u201d Rudd said. \u201cI just loved that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With the help of other bilingual teachers, she said, she was able to use the students\u2019 native languages to help them develop their English writing skills and become enthusiastic about learning. <\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Rudd completed her student teaching at Casimir Pulaski High School in Milwaukee, where she has accepted a full-time position. She taught creative writing and a Diploma Programme (DP) course on theory of knowledge to juniors and seniors. (The DP course is part of Pulaski\u2019s curriculum as an International Baccalaureate high school<\/a>.)  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the help of other bilingual teachers, she said, she was able to use the students\u2019 native languages to help them develop their English writing skills and become enthusiastic about learning. \u201cI loved hearing them chat with each other in their home languages.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was great learning about a bunch of different cultures,\u201d she added, \u201cand having students integrate their own selves into what we were learning and talking about.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students discover their own voices<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Students kept arts-integrated journals of their work through a grant her cooperating teacher had. The two teachers gave the students prompts, which they could respond to and integrate into their journals. Using art supplies and writing responses to the prompts let them share their own culture and experiences \u2013 some of them traumatic \u2013 in those journals. \u201cIt was very much focused on student expression, which I really loved,\u201d Rudd said.\u00a0
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As an avid reader herself, Rudd said she loves helping students discover and analyze literature and discover their own voices. \u201cIt can be hard for high-schoolers because at that point, they either absolutely love it or hate it. Sometimes the hardest challenge is just to get them to buy in. Writing can be such an amazing escape and such a great way to express yourself and get whatever message you want out there.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was glad some of the students were comfortable talking to her outside of class about the issues they were dealing with. \u201cHigh school can be very complicated for students,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s always rewarding to make a connection with a student, and they\u2019d come in to talk to me about something outside of class, whether it was sports-related or job-related or whatever. I felt I\u2019d really accomplished something whenever students felt comfortable telling me about their lives.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the help of her cooperating teacher, Rudd said, she worked on figuring out what kind of teacher she wanted to be \u2013 finding the balance between creating a classroom that was warm, welcoming and supportive, but with high expectations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Student teaching confirmed career in education<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

She chose UWM after growing up in Wauconda, Illinois. Her dad is a UWM graduate, and her mom played on the soccer team before transferring to UW-Whitewater.  
 
\u201cUWM was a great support system for me, and I had multiple professors I truly treasure and am so grateful for.\u201d  
 
Her student teaching confirmed her career choice, Rudd said. 
 
\u201cThe rewarding part was doing what I was meant to be doing. My whole academic career beforehand was always focused on being a teacher. So, it was really great when I started doing it, it was like \u2018yes,\u2019 I can\u2019t see myself doing anything else.\u201d 
 
Rudd joins a long list of UWM English Education graduates who have received the award over the last few years.  
 
\u201cSomeone has earned this award from UWM for the past seven years and intermittently in the previous decade,\u201d said Kristine Lize, director of the English Education program, who nominated Rudd.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Previous award winners include:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n