Anderson retiring after 51 years

For the past half century, Nancy Anderson has nurtured some of the youngest learners in the Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose area. 

This summer, she will retire after 43 years at Hanover Elementary, 50 years with BHM Schools overall, and 51 total years of teaching.

“I think the only remarkable thing about my career is the longevity,” she said. “I don’t think there’s anything else that’s really noteworthy other than I couldn’t figure out how to stop. I’ve always enjoyed it.”

The Mankato native was destined for a career in education.

“I knew from age 8 that I wanted to be a teacher and never wavered from that,” she said. “I had a lot of trusted adults as teachers who maybe saw past the reserved, shy child in me and saw promise – something that they knew they could nurture. And that’s my “why”: to give to youngsters what I received in a school setting.”

Hanover Elementary Principal Brad Koltes said Anderson exemplified that commitment to a higher purpose, and that she brought far more value than simple endurance.

“She doesn’t see teaching as a profession; she sees it as a calling,” he said. “For her, retiring was not an easy decision because she loves it so much. Her dedication is incredible. The amount of time she puts in on weekends, after school, over the summer – the number of families, students and staff she has worked with and touched over the years, it’s pretty remarkable.”

Answering the call
Anderson completed her own schooling and college training in Mankato, then struck off to begin her career in a self-contained special education classroom in Milnor, North Dakota.

The following year, in 1976, she moved back closer to home when she was hired for a similar special education position in Buffalo. She spent four years at what was then Buffalo Elementary (now Parkside Elementary), before shifting to the primary school (now Tatanka Elementary STEM School) in 1980.

“It was the time in the history of education marking the end of self-contained special education rooms and the beginning of mainstreaming,” said Anderson. “So, in my first job in 877, along with my teammate, I was breaking some barriers. Classroom teachers were not accustomed to having youngsters with special needs in their room.”

In 1983 she was offered a job teaching students with learning disabilities at Hanover Elementary. Four years later she moved into a general education classroom, where she has been ever since. During that time she has taught a combination classroom of second- and third-graders, many years of second grade, multi-age K-2 classrooms, and first- and second-grade looping classrooms.

What does she enjoy most about that age range of student?

“It is an era in a child’s development of tremendous growth,” Anderson said. “They go from being very literal beings to being able to handle abstractions and humor as well as changes in schedule. They are ready for more independence and responsibility. That occurs in this window between 6 and 8 years of age. They’re still excited about learning. It’s the time when most of them learn to read, and that is a big feather in their caps.”

Delayed retirement
Anderson was mulling retirement in 2020, but couldn’t walk away after COVID interrupted the school year.

“I’m the kind of individual who needs more closure rather than less,” she said. “When we left on that Friday, we had no knowledge that we wouldn’t be back until the next fall. For me, there were too many dangling pieces to be able to bow out comfortably then.”

Instead of stepping away, Anderson leaned in to develop a new skill set necessary for remote teaching. Key to that development was assistance from more technologically adept colleagues.

“I have learned so much from people who are younger than I am.  When I was educated to become a teacher, everything was so different,” Anderson said. “Everything was simpler. Education now has become increasingly more complex.”

In the years since, because she teaches first- and second-graders for two years in a loop, Anderson said it was difficult to break away.

“Everybody has always said, ‘Nancy, you’ll know when it’s time to retire.’ Well, I have never felt that, so eventually I just had to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘This is it,’” said Anderson. “Fifty years had nothing to do with it. That’s just a happy accident.”

Highlights
While events like the Festival of Nations, vocabulary parades and organizing author visits were highlights, as were new initiatives like multi-age learning, Anderson also appreciated the quieter times.

“There is a quote, ‘Enjoy the small everyday moments in life, because someday they will be your cherished memories.’ That is something I think accurately depicts my life and the day-to-day interactions,” said Anderson. “It’s just like when you parent. There are day-to-day interactions you might not feel are significant, but upon reflection you realize they were the big moments in your life.”

What kept her coming back year after year were the long-term relationships with students and their families, her colleagues, and the unique fit of her aptitudes to the task.

“Teaching has been an outlet for my skills,” she said. “I’m able to use organization and creativity. I like the variety, and I am a people person.”

A legacy
Anderson’s counterparts in the other first- and second-grade looping classrooms in Hanover said that working with her has been a “gift.”

“She consistently goes above and beyond for her students and approaches teaching with kindness, creativity, and genuine care,” said Andrea Carlson. “Her teamwork, encouragement, and willingness to share ideas have made a lasting impact on both colleagues and students alike. She will be deeply missed and warmly remembered.”

Becky Hanson worked with Anderson for 33 years, and said that she exemplified a professional educator who made sure students were set up for success.

“Nancy is great at remembering and acknowledging milestones and celebrations for students and colleagues,” said Hanson. “Nancy loves doing the extra things that make school fun. Nancy takes her job personally and spends a great deal of time and effort to be prepared to teach each day. She has made a permanent mark on Hanover Elementary School. I only hope that we can honor her legacy in the years to come.”

The next chapter
Anderson said that looking ahead to life without a 5 a.m. weekday alarm clock is both daunting and exciting.

“I think my family wants me to savor whatever time I have left. So, processing what that means is an ongoing event for me,” said Anderson. “There are some bittersweet moments and there are some moments of relief.”

She appreciated the support of her family in her ongoing work, including her two grown children and her husband, who has been retired for nine years.
“Everybody asks me what’s next, and I don’t know,” said Anderson. “I have a variety of interests, but I don’t know if they will fill the same creativity and resourcefulness and excitement that teaching has given me. It’s hard for me to walk by something and not turn it into a lesson, but I want to be open to new possibilities.

“I’m a little unnerved by extended periods of time without a purpose. I need a purpose, and for 51 years, education has been my purpose. It has been a career, yes, but it’s never been a job. It’s always been a calling.”