Olson Middle School Teacher Celebrates 30 Years
Jodi Carufel, an eighth-grade language arts teacher at Olson Middle School, is celebrating her 30th year of teaching, having spent her entire career at the Bloomington school where she once was a student.
Carufel moved to Bloomington in sixth grade and attended what was then Normandale Hills Elementary before continuing to Olson Junior High for seventh and eighth grades. She graduated from Jefferson High School and returned to teach at Olson after college, fulfilling a prediction she made in a letter to herself during her college years.
The veteran educator said her teaching philosophy has evolved over three decades from focusing primarily on academics to emphasizing student support and encouragement. She works to help students envision their futures and build confidence, regardless of their academic performance.
Carufel credits two of her former English teachers, Mrs. Koppelman and Mrs. Bergtold, with having a significant impact on her life during her own junior high years. She said those experiences shaped her approach to being what she calls a "champion" for students who may need additional support.
Current students describe Carufel as caring, understanding and passionate about teaching. One former student told her that a mock trial exercise in eighth grade inspired her to pursue a career in law, majoring in sociology, criminology and justice.
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- The 30-year legacy of a local educator and her impact on students' futures.
- Examining the role of middle school teachers as mental health advocates for students.
- Tracing the career trajectory from student to veteran educator in the Bloomington school system.
There is joy in what I do, partly because I know this is my calling.
Source document
[0:00] - Good afternoon, eighth graders.
[0:01] Welcome back to Language Arts.
[0:03] - [Student] She's helped me
become a better public speaker.
[0:05] - You want to make sure
to look around the room.
[0:09] Hi, I'm Jody Carufel,
[0:11] and I am an eighth grade
language arts teacher
[0:13] at Olson Middle School.
[0:15] I have been teaching
at Olson Middle School
[0:17] my entire teaching career,
[0:19] and this is year number 30.
[0:20] I moved to Bloomington
starting in sixth grade.
[0:23] I had an aunt in real estate,
[0:25] and she said, "You have to
go to school in Bloomington.
[0:29] "They have the best schools."
[0:31] We four kids begged our parents
[0:33] to find a house in Bloomington.
[0:35] I went to Normandale Hills
[0:36] when sixth grade was still
in the elementary schools.
[0:39] Then I ended up here at Olson Junior High
[0:42] before it was a middle school
[0:43] and came here for
seventh and eighth grade,
[0:45] and then we were part
of the ninth grade class
[0:47] that moved over to Jefferson.
[0:48] And so then I graduated from Jefferson,
[0:51] and then I went on to college,
[0:52] but I came back to my roots.
[0:54] So when I was in college,
[0:56] my roommates and I, we
wrote a letter to ourselves
[0:58] where we'd see ourselves in five years,
[1:00] and, in that letter, I wrote
down the man I would marry,
[1:03] the car I would drive, where I would live,
[1:06] and where I would work.
[1:07] And all of those came true.
[1:09] When I first started teaching,
[1:10] I thought it was really
all about the academics,
[1:12] but it shifted somewhere,
[1:14] and it really became more
about helping these kids
[1:17] and helping them understand that,
[1:20] "Hey, you have a future in front of you."
[1:22] And I want to give them that hope.
[1:24] I want to help them see their future
[1:25] even if it's not necessarily
academic, you know,
[1:29] that they can do anything.
[1:31] Mrs. Koppelman was my
seventh grade teacher,
[1:34] and she made me feel
like I could do anything.
[1:37] I can't get through it
without getting emotional.
[1:40] My gosh.
[1:41] I wrote a paper.
[1:43] In that paper, I really struggled with,
[1:46] "Is my existence worth it?"
[1:50] And I wasn't sure,
[1:52] and I worked through that,
[1:56] but Mrs. Bergtold was the
teacher who she read my paper,
[2:00] she did not dismiss it,
and she pulled me aside,
[2:03] and she's like, "Jody,
we should get some help."
[2:06] Those two English teachers in junior high
[2:09] had an impact that they were unaware of.
[2:12] Do we remember?
[2:13] I don't want my students
to walk a dark road.
[2:15] Sometimes they need a champion
[2:17] that isn't necessarily a family member.
[2:20] Sometimes they need a champion
[2:21] where they see them in a different way.
[2:23] - If you had her class,
[2:24] you would understand how
like caring and nice she is
[2:26] to her students
[2:27] and how like understanding she is
[2:29] and how fun of a teacher she is
[2:30] and how like good she
is at being a teacher.
[2:32] - Okay.
[2:33] - She is a really caring person
[2:34] and actually loves what she's doing,
[2:37] and she knows what she's doing,
[2:39] and you should definitely look up to her.
[2:41] - I forget about the influence
that I have on students,
[2:45] and I ran into a former student,
[2:48] and she said that it was
because of the mock trial
[2:52] that we did in eighth grade
[2:54] that basically gave her her passion
[2:57] for the major she went into
[2:58] which was sociology,
criminology, and justice.
[3:01] So she wants to be a lawyer.
[3:02] There is joy in what I do,
[3:04] partly because I know this is my calling.
[3:07] and when I know that I am
doing what I am called to do,
[3:10] there's a lot of joy in that.
[3:12] - [Jody and students] Ah.
[3:13] - [Jody] Thank you for
the participation. (claps)
[3:14] That was awesome.
[3:15] (students chatting indistinctly)
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Other Topics from This Document
Eighth-grade Language Arts instruction
Teacher reflection on pedagogical philosophy
Impact of mentorship on student development
Teacher career longevity and personal motivation
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