Date: 11/22/2005
Contact: Dawn Fuller ; E-mail: Dawn.Fuller@uc.edu
Phone: (513) 556-1823
Photos By: Jamie Brickley

“SHY STUDENT” THANKS TEACHER FOR CHALLENGING HIM TO SPEAK UP

Kory Cottrell, a self-described quiet kid in high school, admits that he really wasn’t looking forward to taking high school history, but says his teacher, Ms. Lauterbach, not only got him interested in the subject material, but also got him interested in speaking out. As a result, Crissy Lauterbach, who’s now an educator for the Teacher Academy Program through Butler Tech at Lakota East High School, will be one of four Tristate teachers to be honored for helping a UC student stay on track for college.

Ms. Lauterbach of Kettering, Ohio, will receive the new UC Tristate Outstanding Educator Award at the University of Cincinnati Autumn Commencement Ceremony that starts at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, in Fifth Third Arena at Shoemaker Center. The award includes a $1,000 scholarship to UC that Ms. Lauterbach can offer to a senior high school student who’s planning to enter UC in the 2006-2007 academic year.

Kory Cottrell, the son of UC Health Promotion and Education Professor Randall Cottrell, is looking ahead to a spring graduation from the College of Business with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, double majoring in marketing and operations management. As a shy teenager, he recalls that “high school can be overbearing and intimidating, but Ms. Lauterbach kept everything in perspective, outside of just being a teacher. She pushed shy students to step up – through class participation and presentations. I feel that I built on a lot of my current abilities through her teaching manner and approach.”

Kory says it was that inspiration that motivated him to expand on his social skills through five quarters of co-op experience at GE Aircraft Engines. He just accepted his final co-op in sales for Hershey’s. He also set goals for graduating with a 3.5 grade point average, and is one of 2,000 UC students who participate in UC’s Honors Scholars Program for academically talented students.

A 12-year veteran of teaching, Ms. Lauterbach was initially looking ahead to a career in justice. “I thought I was going to be a lawyer and that education was going to lead me to a law career, but then I stepped into the classroom and stayed there.” A national speaker on education-related issues, she recently presented a workshop on teaching techniques at Harvard University.

She recalls that Kory was a quiet student, but was “well-spoken with good ideas. By the end of his sophomore year, I thought he had really emerged as a leader.”

For the past four years, Ms. Lauterbach has been working full-time for the Teacher Academy Program through Butler Tech at Lakota East High School, preparing high school juniors and seniors for futures in the teaching profession. “There are times as a teacher that you don’t know if you’re reaching every student, so Kory’s recognition of me motivates me to keep on working as hard as I do. Students like Kory challenge you to be a better teacher.”