A True Representation of DKG
We showcase Mary Jane Carreno, a member of Pi Chapter in Wisconsin, in the July Member Spotlight. Mary Jane has been very busy at the state and chapter levels of DKG. She has assisted with joint meetings with other DKG chapters in southeast Wisconsin, giving all in attendance an opportunity to interact with other professionals from a variety of educational settings. These events were well-received and increased both attendance of current members and the recruitment of new members. She developed a 50-year award recognition to encourage long-term commitment to DKG and also recognized members for every 5 years that helped to promote longevity and recognize what members have done throughout the years. One project she coordinated was the assembly of gift bags of supplies for selected high-need schools so that teachers had materials needed to enhance their classroom environments. Mary Jane also organized and hosted a Zoom meeting that was offered to all Wisconsin chapters on a Saturday morning. Her granddaughter presented her experiences with the Peace Corp in South Africa that allowed educators to learn more about teaching and serving children on another continent.
Among her peers in Wisconsin, Mary Jane has become known as the “princess of publications” producing one of the most extensive and complete chapter yearbooks known in her state organization. For many years, she has tirelessly produced sixty or more pages of materials for her group, highlighting both required annual calendars, committee lists, and contact information as well as historical and relevant current information from the Wisconsin State Organization and DKG International. Her work has become a template and shining example for other chapters. When new members receive this yearbook, they are very appreciative and often comment that it truly helps them feel a part of the group and understand DKG better.
Mary Jane has been an invaluable member of the state convention planning process, spearheading many initiatives like hospitality and offering opening reflections for the business meetings. Her knowledge and talent in all things musical has been very useful at the state and local level.
Mary Jane has had a remarkable professional life. She has now passed the fifty-fifth year mark as an educator! She started as a Physical Education/health/dance teacher at an elite private school in 1970 and within a few years, moved to the larger public school system nearby. By her second decade in the field, she moved into administration, serving as a principal, an activity director, and a curriculum and instruction director. More recently, she has been a coordinator/auditor for the Wisconsin School Evaluation Consortium at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she interviewed teachers and staff concerning content subject matter and state standards in relation to district curriculum then presented recommendations or highlighted key factors related to curriculum to administrators, teachers, staff, school boards and community members of various districts.
Mary Jane currently serves as a supervisor of student teachers at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville with a deep commitment to impacting the lives of her college students who will become the teachers of tomorrow. She goes the extra mile as a supervisor by demonstrating and practicing together with her students how to be highly effective in the classroom by understanding the different learning levels of each student and how diversity impacts performance. Many of her students say these qualities helped them successfully get through student teaching and have helped them be highly successful in their first teaching positions.
Mary Jane has stepped forward to serve in a leadership role as the new president of her chapter. Her goal for her biennium is to make sure that she creates a cohesive, member-focused group that aligns with both local needs and the larger organization's mission especially as it applies to membership growth. She subscribes to the idea that quality programs are a great way to attract new members from local schools and other educational institutions. She is also a member of the Wisconsin State Leadership Development Committee, and she has been focusing on making sure that her chapter is meeting her state's expectations and priorities and is coordinating its activities, special programs in particular, with other nearby chapters.
Her nominator probably says it best when she wrote, “Mary Jane Carreno is deserving of a member spotlight feature because she is what I believe to be a truly representative member. Her focus and loyalty is decidedly local, though she does participate in state and national/international events when possible. Sometimes we lose sight of the literally hundreds of members in chapters across the nation and the world who will never, for whatever reason, want to or be able to travel widely to do DKG things. Yet, they hold down the organization, serving in their communities weekly if not daily to make the lives of teachers and students better. Her contributions are significant and have been prolific for nearly sixty years.”
Congratulations Mary Jane on a well-deserved honor!