In her second- and third-grade classroom at Farson-Eden School in Farson, Laurie Hanks teaches children according to their individual learning styles. She adapted the Accelerated Reader program to include a reward system that has students vying to read out loud or lead a discussion. As a result, her students achieved the highest reading scores in the district, and entire school staffs have visited her classroom to observe her multiple-grade model. Mrs. Hanks calls upon high-school students to assist her with hands-on activities in the classroom and enhances science projects with visits from professors at the local university. She is the school's grant writing team leader and has led the school in aligning the curriculum to state standards.
1981 University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire, B.S.
