New Berlin, Wis. - Four School District of New Berlin educators have been chosen as Herb Kohl Educational Foundation award winners, giving the SDNB at least four Kohl award recipients in each of the last five years.

Pat Detmer, a special education teacher at New Berlin West; Maggie Lannoye, an occupational therapist; Jacki Thering, an elementary orchestra teacher; and Lisa Vega, the district’s 18-21-year-old Pathways
Program special education teacher, have been awarded Herb Kohl Educational Foundation Fellowship Awards.

They are four of 100 Wisconsin teachers to earn this year’s $6,000 award with a matching $6,000 award given to their respective schools. Fellowship recipients are educators who have been chosen for their superior ability to inspire a love of learning in their students, their ability to motivate others, and their leadership service within
and outside the classroom.

Fellowship recipients are selected by a statewide committee composed of civic leaders and representatives of education-related associations and the program’s co-sponsors: The Wisconsin Newspaper Association
Foundation, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Wisconsin Council of Religious and Independent School, regional Cooperative Educational Service Agencies and the Association of Wisconsin School
Administrators.

“The Herb Kohl Educational Foundation awards are certainly a point of pride for our district each and every year,” Superintendent Joe Garza said. “They give us a reason to celebrate our incredible staff and recognize those who make a difference in our schools daily.

“This year is unique in that none of our four award winners are traditional classroom teachers. It’s a shining example of how our district excels at educating and preparing all students and places an emphasis on our music and fine arts programs. Our families and our community should be proud, not only of these four exceptional teachers, but of our entire staff of educators.”

The Kohl Foundation Scholarship and Fellowship program was established by Herb Kohl, U.S. Senator (Retired), in 1990. To date, the foundation has awarded $28.3 million to Wisconsin educators, students, and
schools.