C O O P ER AT I V E N EW S (Co ntinue d) Champions continued from page 2
SCSC Welcomes New Staff
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CSC welcomes regional college and career readiness coordinator Gwenn Wolters and High-STEP coordinator/instructor Brandi Bjorklund to its staff. Wolters will serve as secondary Perkins coordinator for the South Central Perkins Consortium and as project director for the Guided Pathways to Success multisector, regional grant made possible through funding by the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
The Gathering of Champions is funded by donations and sponsors. Synergy thanks South Central Service Cooperative and the other members of The Minnesota Service Cooperatives who have partnered with Synergy for more than 20 years by encouraging schools in their regions to nominate their students and by serving as volunteers at the event. Schools in the South Central Service Cooperative region are encouraged to nominate their students as Academic All-Stars with the recommended selection criteria including: • Students who are consistent top academic performers; • Students who have shown significant improvement in achievement or have overcome barriers to academic achievement; and/or • Students who are local, regional or state champions in a Minnesota Academic League Council approved event
Wolters' passion for education runs the length of her professional career, more than 16 years. She most recently served as director of admissions at Rasmussen College in Mankato. Wolters describes some of her proudest moments as celebrating a student’s walk across the graduation stage, knowing his/her struggles, and seeing the tears and smiles from the graduate’s loved ones. “Priceless!” “Everyone has a path – they just need to find it!” says Wolters. Gwenn and her husband Todd live near the Rapidan Dam with their two children, Grady, age 17 and Mya age 13. They are lifelong community members, and both she and her husband graduated from Lake Crystal Wellcome Memorial High School where their children now attend. Bjorklund is the new health science career teacher at South Central Service Cooperative. She joins us with experience in the education and health sciences fields. Bjorklund has a Bachelor of Science in exercise science and a minor in health education. She has been trained on health education and awareness working within the public school system, along with general health related courses such as anatomy, physiology and medical terminology. Bjorklund has begun graduate coursework in education and is advancing her learning of technology within the classroom. She is thrilled to be working within the Mankato community, sharing her excitement and passion for health and wellness with students who are eager to learn more about the healthcare industry. Bjorklund, her husband and their 2-year-old son live on a family farm between Saint Peter and Nicollet.
Nominations open in March; visit www. synergyexchange.org for more information.
Cooperative Link
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FALL 2017