Marilena Gozur was named the 2022 Illinois East Central Teacher of the Year by the Illinois State Board of Education's Those Who Excel Awards. Mrs. Gozur is going into her 14th year at Cedar Ridge Elementary School in Unit 5, which is where she started her career. As a bilingual special education teacher, she works with students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

In this episode of ROE 17 POD, we sit down with ROE # 17 Truancy Specialists Jim Drengwitz and Steve Mintus. Jim, and Steve, along with Mary Diener, are all retired administrators who serve on our team to help families and students overcome various obstacles to getting to school.

Cara Logan was born in Illinois and attended Unit 5 schools from kindergarten through high school. During her junior year of high school, she was in Bloomington Area Career Center’s Health Careers and Medical Terminology class and participated in the cadaver dissection lab in LeRoy. During her senior year of high school, she had the privilege of being in both BACC's EMT-Basic class and the Certified Nursing Assistant class. She also served as a student proctor of the cadaver lab that same year. She attended Indiana University for undergrad and then took a gap year in College Station, Texas before starting medical school at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine - Greenville. She is in her fourth year of medical school with plans to pursue urology.

Dr. Katie Bruemmer was recently named the 2023 Illinois East Central Teacher of the Year by the Illinois State Board of Education’s Annual Those Who Excel Awards. Dr. Bruemmer is the College and Career Readiness Coordinator at Heyworth CUSD 4. As an English Teacher at Heyworth, Dr. Bruemmer saw a need to expand AP courses and has expanded Heyworth’s AP program to include 14 dual credit courses, teaching four of those herself. One is Education 101, an introductory course for students interested in becoming teachers.

Cameo Williams has worked in education for almost 20 years! She has served as a first-grade and third-grade teacher and will be the new Assistant Principal at Pepper Ridge Elementary. Cameo, who goes by Cami in her district, was recently recognized in our ROE # 17 Regional Recognition program for her work on the Grove Care Closet, a project to give back to student educators.

Colonel (Ret) Jeff Palomino served in the United States Air Force JAG Corps for over 2 decades before retiring in the fall of 2022. During his Air Force career, he held a variety of legal positions culminating with assignments at the Pentagon and in the White House. In this episode, Superintendent Jontry visits with his lifelong friend, and Chenoa High School Graduate (1988), about his career path, the value of education, participating in various activities, and the variety of experiences he has had to date. To learn more about Colonel Palomino’s career, please visit his LinkedIn page

Brandon Thornton is a Special Education teacher at Bloomington High School and was the 2021 East Central Regional Teacher of the Year through the Illinois State Board of Education's Those Who Excel Awards. Brandon is an Illinois State University Graduate who started in the math classroom and rose to the occasion when the opportunity came up to get into Special Education.

Join ROE # 17 as we chat with Dr. Lindsey Jensen, the 2018 Illinois Teacher of the Year and fierce advocate for all things education. Dr. Jensen is the Early Career Development and Student Director for the Illinois Education Association, a former high school English teacher, and a former academic dean. Dr. Jensen is a leading force in Educators Rising, a program that promotes and educates high school students that want to become teachers.

Back to School is right around the corner, and with that comes the need for school supplies. Join ROE # 17 as we visit with Jan Meadows. Jan is a retired educator that was named the Illinois Prairie Community Foundation's 2022 Philanthropist of the Year. Among other local service initiatives, Jan serves as the chair for the the Back to School Alliance, which is a coalition of groups that provides more than 4,000 backpacks annually to low-income families from Unit 5 and District 87.

Join ROE # 17 as we sit down with Dr. Josh Olsen, the Executive Director for Livingston County Special Services Unit (LCSSU). Dr. Olsen has been in education for almost 25 years and has been with LCSSU for the past five. In the episode, we will learn about special education services available to students, why special ed cooperatives exist, and how guardians can advocate for services for their children.