[The Stage is on Fire] is a page-turner in which, much like life, there are no easy answers and yet each step of the journey yields insight and hope. This work of heart must not be missed!
Katie Steedly’s first-person piece [The Unspeakable Gift] is a riveting retelling of her participation in a National Institutes of Health study that aided her quest to come to grips with her life of living with a rare genetic disorder. Her writing is superb.
In recognition of receiving the Dateline Award for the Washingtonian Magazine essay, The Unspeakable Gift.
I thank you … It is the authenticity of your “class notes”; and it is the delicacy and skill with which you present the nuances of classroom life and the actuality of your students’ and fellow teachers’ lives.
Paula Herbart took office as President of the Michigan Education Association on Sept. 1, 2017. A lifelong musician, Paula’s time at Interlochen Center for the Arts, as a camper played a seminal role in her development as a leader. Later as a IAC camp counselor, divisional director, IAA residence hall counselor and as a member of the Interlochen Alumni Council executive committee, her experiences at Interlochen continue to shape her life. A K-12 music teacher in Macomb County’s Fraser Public Schools, Herbart served in numerous leadership roles within her local, including local president. In 2012, she was elected president of MEA/NEA Local 1, serving 16 districts in Macomb and Wayne counties. She has served on the MEA and NEA Board of Directors, as chair of the 6-E Coordinating Council, and vice chair of both the MEA’s Local Option Coalition and the Instructional and Professional Development Committee. Currently, Paula is a Michigan delegate to the Democratic National Committee and serves on the Board of Directors for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. A graduate of the University of Michigan-School of Music, Herbart lives in Macomb County with her husband, Ken and son, August.
