Photos by Melody Guyton Butts
LEFT: Middle School French teacher Teresa Engebretsen addresses students during tutorial. RIGHT: Engebretsen mingles with rising ninth-graders (from left) Elizabeth Biersach, Lily Tendler and Maggie Paul after the Middle School closing exercises, when Engebretsen was honored with the Hershey Award.
Hershey Award Winner Teresa Engebretsen
Beloved teacher gives 100 percent S
BY G LY N I S H I L L- C H A N D L E R , D E A N O F S T U D E N T S , T H E H I L L C E N T E R
age, excellent advisor, mentor, much-loved teacher — these are just a few of the words used to describe this distinguished educator. One might say that she has a joie de vivre as exhibited by her many ways of being involved at Durham Academy. Teresa Engebretsen has taught at Durham Academy for a remarkable 33 years. During that time she has held the positions of French teacher, seventh-grade team leader, registrar, curriculum coordinator of foreign language, after-school care coordinator and softball and cheerleading coach. But mostly, as described by her students, she has held a position in their hearts. Her students not only love her French class, they love her. On the first day of school each year, Engebretsen sets the bar high when it comes to her expectations in her class. Her students respect her for all the effort and care she shows for them. The French program is a vibrant program thanks to her endeavors. She doesn’t stop at teaching French in the classroom. Each year she takes a group of eighth-grade students to France during spring break. Every year the students come back full of stories of how much they learned and how much fun they had. “It was my favorite trip ever! Those are memories that will last a lifetime,” said one of her students. And when students can’t travel with Engebretsen, she makes sure they understand the language and get the true French experience through classroom skits, playing board games and cooking and eating French food! She also welcomes a group of students from France to the Durham Academy community each year. Students like knowing they can count on their teacher to be an advocate for them in the classroom, but they rejoice in knowing that their teacher follows them outside of the classroom as well. Engebretsen demonstrates this balanced commitment as an avid supporter of Middle School and Upper School athletics and can be seen cheering them on at sports events. She also was the leader of GO (Girls Only) Club for seventhand eighth-grade girls. What an accomplishment to provide Middle School girls the opportunity to know that they have a safe haven to 30
DURHAM ACADEMY RECORD | SUMMER 2013 | WWW.DA.ORG
discuss issues pertinent to young females. Engebretsen truly understands the academic, social and emotional challenges that her seventh-graders face each year. She patiently engages in countless one-on-one discussions with them, offering advice when needed and, at other times, encouraging them to take the initiative to solve those issues on their own. In addition to her work with students, Engebretsen is a muchsought-after colleague for advice. She is always ready with a helpful answer and will find time to lend an ear and offer her advice. One of her colleagues said, “She is a warm, caring, compassionate true friend to all of us.” Another colleague said, “She has been a role model and inspiration to me for a long time!” Engebretsen is active in the Durham community as a food blogger and has contributed food columns to The Herald-Sun. She is a member of the Foreign Language Association of North Carolina and is past president of the North Carolina chapter of the American Association of Teachers of French. Engebretsen loves to travel, and in 2008 she spent time working in France as a chef’s assistant at a bed and breakfast. She enjoys cooking, particularly French cooking. She is also a talented writer, and perhaps there is a novel in her future. These experiences have contributed to enriching what she shares with students in her classes. Engebretsen is a loyal, dedicated teacher who has poured her heart and soul into Durham Academy. She embraces the learning and teaching of French and has expanded her own horizons of understanding the language through continued education and travel. Her two sons were “lifers” at Durham Academy, and her husband is a Durham Academy administrator. The entire Durham Academy community recognizes that Engebretsen gives 100 percent and is most deserving of the F. Robertson Hershey Distinguished Faculty Award. EDITOR’S NOTE: Glynis Hill-Chandler was the 2012 recipient of the F. Robertson Hershey Distinguished Faculty Award.