Supporting Rural Teachers in Greater Dubuque

The Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD), which serves northeastern Iowa and the corners of northwestern Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin, has a long history of building trusting relationships with leaders in rural communities. The anchor of RSC’s Iowa Hub, the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque supports programs and creates opportunities to chart clear paths forward that address complex social challenges, from academic achievement to economic opportunity, including providing support for schools and teachers. Once a year, CFGD hosts a summit bringing rural teachers together, providing professional development, and expressing how vitally important each rural teacher is to their community.

“The purpose of the Rural Teacher Summit is to focus on rural teacher retention across our region. We want to provide an opportunity for our teachers to come together and enjoy a day that empowers each of them as an individual and a teacher while connecting them with resources and other rural teachers across the region” describes Josie Manternach, Program Officer at CGFD and co-lead for RSC’s Iowa Regional Hub. The one-day event this July was hosted by the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium, which sits riverside in downtown Dubuque and offers exhibits, tours, programs, and interpretive experiences.

The day featured presentations, classroom-focused professional development, as well as exploratory sessions facilitated by River Museum and Aquarium staff and local community leaders on ways to connect their students to the unique environment of the Upper-Mississippi River Valley. The summit culminated with a dinner and keynote presentation by Andy Mink, Director of Rural Initiatives at the Smithsonian Institute, who highlighted the importance of rural pride and contextualizing education in place.

One crucial element of the summit, and CGFD’s teacher-retention efforts generally, is the intentional uplifting of each teacher’s individual skills and strengths that they bring to their students. Jason Neises, co-lead of RSC’s Iowa Hub and Community Development Officer at CFGD, sought to emphasize this by facilitating an opening activity that asked each teacher to write a specific classroom skill or talent on one poster, and something their coworkers say they excel at on another. Answers were myriad and touched on both professional and personal traits, highlighting the diversity in rural communities and schools, which CFGD plans to expand upon.

A core focus of the summit was also on empowering teachers with the knowledge and resources to connect students to their environment and local communities. Utilizing the resources, property, and exhibits of the River Museum and Aquarium, teachers could attend professional development sessions focusing on the local ecology. In one session, teachers learned about the relationships between native plants and pollinators; in another, freshwater mussel population tracking. All sessions provided platforms and ideas for field trips or in-class experiences, which teachers were very excited about and inspired to explore during the upcoming school year.

Another vital aspect of the summit utilized the many partnerships that the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque has developed to underscore that in rural places, we are all stronger together. Their work with the River Museum and Aquarium is one example, but the summit also featured local business leaders, such as Leslie Shalabi, who founded a local food hub and cafe called Convivium. Leslie presented on opportunities for school field trips at their garden, their work to combat local hunger, and resources for teachers interested in incorporating gardening into their classrooms. “Partnerships like those we have with the River Museum and Convivium are so important to CFGD because of our shared values and mission. We work collaboratively to build strong communities across Iowa and knowing our communities allows us to serve them for what they are passionate about” shared Josie.

In addition to the annual summit, the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque supports schools and teachers year-round. In 2022, they were one of five recipients of RSC’s Catalyst Initiative Grant, which provided a modest planning grant to rural-serving institutions looking to initiate a Rural Teacher Corps. CFGD utilized those funds to, among other things, to support rural teachers returning to the seven-county region around Dubuque, helping to lower barriers for new teachers to work in rural schools. Additionally, CFGD is heavily involved in local literacy efforts, under the Every Child Reads initiative. Josie notes that beyond Every Child Reads, the CFGD team is “currently focusing on reading resources, attendance, safe schools, and summer learning. Additionally, we work to provide grants throughout the year for both educators and administrators.”

Whether through programs that support students and schools, or teachers directly, the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque provides essential support to education across their rural service area. Moreover, CFGD is actively facilitating opportunities for Place-Based Education for rural students, be it at the River Museum, a local business like Convivium, or on school grounds. They focus on uplifting and augmenting the existing strengths of the individuals and collective might of their respective communities, collaborating and listening to students, parents, and leaders. To learn more about the importance of local philanthropy and its impact on education, read more here.

Rural Schools Collaborative is grateful to Josie Manternach and Jason Neises for inviting the RSC team to participate in their Rural Teacher Summit, and for their continued partnership and support. Rural Schools Collaborative would also like to thank Nancy Van Milligan, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque President and CEO, for her lifelong commitment to serving rural communities and for her dedicated leadership on the RSC Board of Directors.