[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 5636-5637]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   CONGRATULATIONS TO ROXANNE GRIDER

 Mr. BUNNING. Madam President, today I rise to honor Roxanne 
Grider of Bullitt Central High School in Shepherdsville, KY.
  I am extremely proud to announce that Ms. Grider is one of only 10 
special education teachers in the Nation to receive the 2002 Shaklee 
Award for outstanding teachers of students with disabilities. She also 
is the first Kentuckian to receive this distinction since the award's 
inception 5 years ago. This award is given by the Glenda B. and Forrest 
C. Shaklee Institute for Improving Special Education and includes a 
$1000 prize and a trip to Wichita, KS for a conference featuring 
previous award winners and representatives of the Shaklee Institute.
  After receiving a bachelor's degree in history and secondary 
education from Centre College in Danville, KY, Roxanne looked for a job 
as a high school history teacher. Fortunately for the special education 
community, she had no luck finding a teaching job in the field of 
history. Due to the rising demand for special education teachers, 
Roxanne was immediately offered a position in the Hopkins County School 
system. After going through an emergency certification process, Roxanne 
headed back to the classroom to focus

[[Page 5637]]

her studies on helping those less fortunate individuals. She eventually 
received her master's degree, special education certificate, and Rank 
1, which means she took 30 hours beyond her master's degree, from the 
University of Louisville. Ten years has now passed since she took that 
first job, and I believe Roxanne has taken full advantage of what 
appeared to be a professional mishap.
  In her teaching career, Roxanne has set herself apart due to her 
innovate mind and enduring spirit. In the classroom, she empowers her 
students with real-life responsibilities such as planning and cooking 
meals, cleaning, and shopping. In the fall, her class has its own 
business, the B.C. Cookie and Candle Co., which sells glass jars filled 
with layers of cookie ingredients and topped with fabric covered lid. 
She wants all of her students to believe in themselves and what they 
can accomplish in life. It would be very easy and probably convenient 
for her to treat these children as if they were helpless, but she 
refuses to look at them in such a manner. For Roxanne, these children 
have the opportunity to live a proactive life full of adventure and 
action. Ultimately, she wants all of her students to have a job when 
they finish. Although it may not have been the field she wanted to 
enter, special education turned out to be the field Roxanne was 
destined to enter. She has touched many lives and truly made a 
difference.
  I once again congratulate Roxanne for being honored with such a 
prestigious award. I am proud to have such an amazing and talented 
women looking after Kentucky's special children.

                          ____________________