Two northeast North Dakota teachers among Teacher of the Year finalists
North Dakota State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler announced the finalists on Friday, July 11. They are:
* Emily Dawes, a first-grade teacher at J. Nelson Kelly Elementary School in Grand Forks,
* Hannah Sagvold, a business education teacher at Lisbon Public School,
* Frannie Tunseth, who teaches fourth through eighth grades at Mayville-Portland-Clifford-Galesburg Public School in Mayville and
* Leah Wheeling, a sixth-grade physical education and digital literacy teacher at Simle Middle School in Bismarck.
The four finalists were selected from a pool of 48 North Dakota County Teachers of the Year, who were named earlier this year. Baesler plans to visit all all four finalists' schools during the upcoming academic year, a release from Baesler's office said.
The winner will become a candidate for the national Teacher of the Year award.
"These finalists represent the skilled, compassionate educators that we blessed to have in our North Dakota schools," Baesler said in a statement. "Our Teacher of the Year program is intended to lift up the teaching profession and show the respect, appreciation, and admiration we have for our teachers, and celebrate the work they do to educate the young people who represent our future."
The four finalists will be interviewed by an eight-member screening committee, which will make the final selection, the release said. The 2026 North Dakota Teacher of the Year is expected to be announced in September.
North Dakota's 2025 Teacher of the Year is math teacher Kendall Bergrud, of Wachter Middle School in Bismarck. His successor will begin serving as the state Teacher of the Year on Jan. 1, 2026.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
United Airlines Pilot Issues ‘Mayday' After Reported Engine Failure Over Washington
A United Airlines flight carrying 230 people declared an emergency moments after taking off from Washington's Dulles International Airport, with an audio recording capturing the pilot's repeated 'mayday' call to air traffic control. Flight 108 was only moments into its June 25 ascent to Germany's Munich International Airport when its pilot reported an engine failure, according to a tower recording. 'Failure. Engine failure. Left Engine, United 108. Declaring an emergency. Mayday, mayday, mayday,' the pilot is heard saying in the recording obtained and published on YouTube by You Can See ATC. Air traffic control and the pilot discussed preparations for returning to the airport, including the need to dump fuel to adjust for the proper weight needed for landing, according to the audio. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner landed safely shortly after, with 'all passengers deplaned normally at the gate,' a spokesperson for United said in a statement Monday. 'The flight was subsequently canceled and we arranged alternate travel arrangements to take customers to their destination as soon as possible,' they said, while blaming the situation on a 'mechanical issue.' There were no disruptions to other flights, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in an email. The Federal Aviation Administration acknowledged the crew's report of possible engine issues in an email to HuffPost and said it is investigating. Related... NTSB Finds Army Chopper Was Flying Too High When It Collided With Plane Delta Pilot Arrested By Federal Agents After Landing Plane In San Francisco Passenger Plane Crashes In Russia's Far East Killing All 48 On Board SkyWest Plane Does 'Aggressive Maneuver' To Avoid Mid-Air Collision With B-52, Pilot Says
Forbes
9 minutes ago
- Forbes
United Airlines Pilot Declared ‘Mayday' On Recent Flight—Nothing Unusual, Say Experts
A United Airlines pilot issued a mayday distress call after the Boeing 787 he was flying experienced engine failure shortly after taking off from Washington's Dulles airport for Munich on July 25, though 'mayday' calls are not unusual in aviation—letting air traffic controllers know when a flight needs priority handling. A United Airlines Boeing 737 airplane like this one suffered engine failure last month after taking off from Washington DC's Dulles airport. (Photo by Robert Alexander) Getty Images The flight 'returned to Washington Dulles shortly after takeoff to address a mechanical issue,' United Airlines confirmed in a statement shared with Forbes, adding that the plane landed safely, all passengers deplaned normally and the flight was subsequently canceled. 'Mayday' when repeated three times 'indicates imminent and grave danger and that immediate assistance is requested,' according to the Pilot/Controller Glossary published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). 'That's by the book, exactly how it's to be done,' John Cox, aviation safety expert and retired commercial airline pilot, told Forbes of the United incident, adding that giving the mayday call tells air traffic controllers 'you need priority and to start moving airplanes away from you.' United Airlines flight 108 from Washington to Munich was operating a Boeing 787 with 219 passengers and 11 crew members on board, when one of the aircraft's two engines failed. 'Can the airplane fly just fine on a single engine? Yes, but that is something where you want to divert and get back on the ground,' Chad Kendall, an associate professor and FAA chief instructor in the Department of Aviation and Aerospace Science at Metropolitan State University of Denver, told Forbes. Pilots train repeatedly throughout their career for engine failure, multiple veteran pilots told Forbes. Air traffic controllers are used to 'mayday' calls, Cox told Forbes. 'And it's even more normal outside the U.S.' How Often Do Commercial Pilots Declare 'mayday'? 'Most of the public has probably seen a movie where there is a pilot in very dire straits using 'mayday, mayday, mayday,' but in terms of pilot training this is a phrase to convey the type of handling and resources from air traffic control that they need in a situation,' Kendall told Forbes. At least one other United Airlines flight issued a 'mayday' distress call last month, when a Boeing 737 on its way from Chicago O'Hare airport to Sarasota, Florida, on July 17 turned around after experiencing a mechanical issue, according to tower audio captured by Flight Follower. 375,000. That's the number of hours of operation per average turbine engine failure, according to the FAA. That translates to roughly one engine failure every 43 years of continuous flight. What Other Distress Calls Do Pilots Use? 'PAN-PAN,' repeated three times, 'indicates uncertainty or alert followed by the nature of the urgency,' according to the FAA's Pilot/Controller Glossary. 'PAN PAN is used in a lesser event, often for a mechanical issue that does not require urgency,' Kendall said. For example, in May, shortly after takeoff from New York's John F. Kennedy airport, a Lufthansa Airbus A340 crew reported that one of the aircraft's four engines failed while over the Atlantic, approximately 120 miles southeast of Boston. The pilot issued a 'PAN-PAN' distress call and requested to return to JFK, where it landed safely. Surprising Fact 'Mayday' comes from 'm'aidez,' which means 'help me' in French. The term 'PAN-PAN' originates from another French word, "panne,' which means "breakdown" or "failure." Both distress calls were adopted internationally in 1927. Further Reading Nervous About Flying? Here's How Aviation Safety Experts Mitigate Their Own Air Traffic Concerns (Forbes)
CBS News
11 minutes ago
- CBS News
Emergency responders at Grand Central for report of odor of gas
Emergency responders are on the scene at Grand Central Madison following a report of an odor of gas. The call came in just after 2 p.m. Monday. There were no immediate reports of any injuries. Officials cautioned commuters that mass transit service may be disrupted while the odor of gas is being investigated. There were no immediate reports of mass transit delays, however. For the latest on service status, click here. A two-alarm fire at Grand Central Madison disrupted Long Island Rail Road service back in June. In that instance, authorities said the cause was an electrical fire in a deep basement near LIRR tracks. Check back soon for more on this developing story.
