[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 14202-14203]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               RECOGNIZING KAREN McCANN ON HER RETIREMENT

 Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, it is with great pride that I pay 
tribute to an exceptional educator from my home State of Michigan. On 
June 12, Karen McCann will retire after 24 years in public education. 
Karen's creativity and dedication to her students has deeply enriched 
the lives of thousands of young people throughout Michigan.
  Karen has been an innovative and enthusiastic teacher throughout her 
24-year career as an educator in the Michigan public school system. 
While working in the Farmington schools and Troy schools with students 
from 4th through 9th grades, she has prided herself on developing new 
methods of engaging and motivating her students.

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She truly cares about her students' overall well-being and strives to 
create an environment that fosters curiosity and challenges students to 
apply what they have learned to life outside the classroom.
  Karen's commitment to Michigan's children has been demonstrated in 
many ways throughout her long and distinguished career. She has 
received numerous awards including the Detroit News' My Favorite 
Teacher Award and has been nominated for several others, including the 
Disney American Teacher Award, the Newsweek/WDIV Outstanding Teacher 
Award, and is currently under consideration for the JASON Foundation 
for Education's Hilda E. Taylor Award. She has earned such 
distinguished honors because of the heartfelt respect and admiration of 
her peers, students, and parents.
  During the past 7 years, Karen McCann has served as a Michigan JASON 
Teacher Mentor. The JASON Project is a program designed to foster 
interest in natural sciences through imaginative hands-on experiences. 
She has carefully created new and exciting opportunities for students 
to expand their knowledge beyond the classroom by integrating a variety 
of activities with the general curriculum established by the Troy 
School District. For example, she has designed field trips and 
coordinated guest speakers to enhance her students' learning 
experiences and also created a series of afterschool programs entitled 
``JASON U'' to enrich her students' lives beyond the normal schoolday. 
In addition, Karen has arranged exciting new opportunities for 
continuing professional development in the form of seminars for 
teachers throughout the State of Michigan.
  Michigan's children have been touched by Mrs. McCann's genuine 
interest and unwavering desire to provide a meaningful learning 
experience. I have no doubt that Karen's contributions to Michigan's 
public schools will continue to foster innovation in the future. I am 
confident my colleagues will join me in offering our heartfelt thanks 
and appreciation to Karen McCann and in wishing her well in her 
retirement.

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