Press Release: Lu Ann Staheli Wins Best of State: Non-Fiction

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli has been named Utah’s 2010 Best of State Medalist in Literary Arts: Non-Fiction. In the past year, Staheli saw the publication of her first full length book, When Hearts Conjoin, “Which Way—Do-It-Yourself or Traditional?” as a featured cover article for The Writer Magazine, “Bringing the Library Back to Life After the Library Dragon is Slain” in Library Media Connection Magazine, and Fablehaven Teacher’s Guides for Shadow Mountain Publishers. In addition, Lu Ann had articles published in Desert Saints Magazine, Your LDS Neighborhood, and Meridian Magazine, while she continues to write professional book reviews for LMC, The ALAN Review, and The SIGNAL Journal.

A former member of the Spanish Fork City Arts Council and columnist for both the Spanish Fork Press and the Spanish Fork News, Lu Ann is a popular speaker, having delivered workshop presentations for the League of Utah Writers Round-Up, Utah Council of Teachers of English Language Arts, Utah Educator Library Media Association Spring Conference, LDS Storymakers Conference, WriteWise Publishing Book Camp, UELMA Fall Workshop, and two area chapters of the League of Utah Writers in the past year.

Staheli uses her vast knowledge of publication to coach aspiring authors and is a Senior Editor for Precision Editing Group (PEG). Her efforts to teach others the craft of writing has resulted in more than fifty new authors seeing their first books published in the last two years, and a bevy of other authors finding their books best-sellers or as finalists and winners of the Whitney Award since its inception.

Named Best of State Educator K-12 in 2008, Lu Ann recently saw the release of her second biography, Psychic Madman, co-written with Jim Karol. Her upcoming projects include The Business of Marriage with Dino Watt and a biography with entertainer and humanitarian Alan Osmond.

When is Comes to Best of State. . .

Members of my critique group ROCK!

In 2007, Annette Lyon won the Literary Medal for Best of State Fiction,

In 2008, I won Best of State Educator K-12,

And on May 30th, 2009, Heather Moore will receive her medal for Best of State in Literary Arts: Historical Fiction for her Whitney Award winning novel, Abinidi.

How cool is that? We're three in a row.

Congrats, Heather!!!!

Alum wins Utah “Best of State” Educator Award

Indiana University School of Education
Alumni e-newsletter
http://site.educ.indiana.edu/Newsletter_Details/tabid/10806/Default.aspx?xmid=291

Alum wins Utah “Best of State” Educator Award

Teacher for nearly thirty years honored during gala on May 31. By her own count, Lu Ann Brobst Staheli has taught reading and writing to more than 4,000 students. The Utah award is part of the annual Utah Best of State program, which honors excellence in a variety of fields.

Posted On: September-15-2008

How has an IU School of Education graduate turned out students proficient in reading and writing and instilled a love of literature for 29 years? To quote from a loud used-car commercial of days past, “Volume, volume, volume!”

“Until I’ve given them a million words, I can’t teach them how to write,” said Lu Ann Brobst Staheli, B.S. ’76. On the staff at Payson Jr. High School in Payson, Utah since 1984, she says she puts a lot of words in front of her students to help them overcome fears of reading and writing. “The more words I can put in front of them, the more likely they will discover something—a book, short story, poem, or piece of non-fiction—anything that will hook them, giving them a reason to get excited about reading.”

Her passion and her success earned accolades from the annual “Utah Best of State” awards, a program which annually recognizes excellence from a variety of fields across Utah. Staheli won the Best of State Educator K-12 award for her work over the years in teaching English, Writing for Publication, and Reading Options. “At first I didn't realize how big this award was, but I was excited to be nominated and chosen winner of my category,” Staheli said. “I had won other teaching awards before, and assumed this was similar in scope. Then I read the judging criteria and listened to stories about some of the other winners in various categories. I realized that winning Best of State was a wonderful honor.”

Staheli estimates she’s taught more than 4,000 students, many of whom she sees often. “Once my student, always my student,” she said. Many come back to visit the classroom or contact her for book recommendations or just to talk. She said the students develop a sense of connection with her by sharing literacy, which she said helps them value books and writing as adults.

And her work is very visible on the internet, where she maintains several blogs related to reading and writing. “LuAnnsLibrary.blogspot.com has become the gateway to all my blogs and evolved into a place where I write about my life,” Staheli said. “LuAnnsBookReview.blogspot.com allows me to share author interviews and book reviews with teachers, librarians, students, and friends; LuAnnsLibraryTechnology.blogspot.com started as a place to share info with librarians and those in my technology classes; ReadAllAboutItLuAnnStaheli.blogspot.com has tips for parents, teachers and students about literacy; OutoftheBestBooksLuAnnStaheli.blogspot.com focuses on adult literacy issues; and LibraryMediaFriendzy.blogspot.com started in my graduate class as a place for school librarians to share info.”

Staheli points with pride to being a “teacher of teachers.” Two former students also teach at Payson Jr. High, another is an administrator, and several others are in education elsewhere. She says she’s also moved students toward careers in creative writing and journalism. In all students, she’s hoped to encourage a lifelong love of reading.

“People who read succeed,” she said. “If a student reads well, school is easier. Eventually my students leave the junior high school. Most of them graduate from high school. Obviously, those who leave with reading and writing skills will move on to successful careers that add to the economy."

Lu Ann Staheli Wins Utah Best of State Educator K-12

Lu Ann Brobst Staheli has been named as the Utah’s Best of State Educator K-12 at a recent Gala. Staheli graduated from Alexandria-Monroe H.S. in Alexandria, Indiana, in 1972, and the Indiana University Blooomington School of Education in 1976. She taught English and psychology at Rockville Jr. Senior High School in Rockville, Indiana, for five years before moving to Utah. In 1984, Lu Ann joined the staff at Payson Jr. High School in Payson, Utah. For the past twenty-three years she has taught English, Writing for Publication, and Reading Options. In May she earned a Masters Degree in Instructional Technology with a Library Media endorsement through Utah State University’s School of Education.

Lu Ann is a teacher of teachers. Two of her former students teach with her at Payson Jr. High, one is an administrator there, and numerous others have entered the education field. She has been a mentor to four students teachers, all of whom have continued in the field. In addition to helping students become teachers, she also has moved students to careers in creative writing and journalism, but perhaps the most successful thing she has done is encouraged a generation of lifelong readers.

During her twenty-nine years as an English teacher, Lu Ann has shared her love of reading and writing with over 4,000 students, and it doesn’t look like she is ready to stop teaching them anytime soon. “Once my student, always my student” is her personal philosophy, and her students seem to know that without ever being told. They come back to visit her classroom years later, stop her in the local grocery, and track her down via the Internet to ask her for book recommendations, tell her about their latest writing project, or share a favorite memory from a long-ago class she taught. Through shared literacy, students develop a sense of connection to Lu Ann that leads them into an adult world where books and writing are important. The fact that many of her own students have become teachers, and that she also mentors student teachers, broadens her influence even farther across the state and perhaps the world.

“Until I’ve given them a million words, I can’t teach them how to write,” describes the beginnings of an English program under Lu Ann’s tutelage. “So many students come to me—even in my Honors programs—with a limited view of reading and a fear of writing. A boring book or a single blood-red paper returned from a well-meaning teacher can halt a student’s progress toward engagement in reading or improvement in writing for years, sometimes even a lifetime.”

To help her students overcome those fears, Lu Ann begins her school year with reading. She teaches strategies and tips to improve reading skills, no matter what level a student currently tests, then she gives them plenty of time to practice those skills. She reads high interest books aloud to them, lets students read in small groups, and includes time for plenty of independent reading, providing audio books for students who need additional reading support. “The more words I can put in front of them, the more likely they will discover something—a book, short story, poem, or piece of non-fiction—anything that will hook them, giving them a reason get excited about reading and hopefully leading them to reading on their own. If it takes giving a student something new to try every day, then I’ll do it. All it takes is one book—the right one—to make a lifelong fan of reading.”

In addition to reading, Lu Ann leads her students into writing fluency. “Getting words down onto the page is hard for most people, but this is especially true of junior high students who are already a little insecure. I believe in letting students feel comfortable with writing, validating their efforts and ideas, long before I make corrections and suggestions.” A professional writer herself, Lu Ann teaches the craft of writing rather concentrating during early draft stages on the skills of editing. “Editing is the final process in writing. Too many teachers seek perfection from their students long before the work is ready. Editing too early can ruin voice, stop the flow of fresh ideas, and squelch any student desire to attempt, let alone perfect, a piece of writing,” she says. This process of building readers, then teaching the craft of writing, has found Lu Ann’s students of all ability levels not only among the highest scores on a variety of state and standardized tests, but also eventually following career paths that allow them to use these skills without fear.

“People who read succeed, or so the slogan goes. If a student reads well, school is easier for him or her. The information disseminated via teacher lectures, textbooks, and other materials becomes accessible and interesting,” Lu Ann states. “Eventually my students leave the junior high school. Most of them graduate from high school. Obviously, those who leave with reading and writing skills will move on to successful careers that add to the economy,” something Lu Ann herself does through the various employment and volunteer opportunities she follows beyond her work in the classroom.

In addition to teaching, Lu Ann has long served her local community. As a member of the staff at Alan Osmond Productions, Lu Ann was an Associate Producer for Stadium of Fire, a member of the Spanish Fork Arts Council, State Coordinator for the National Council of Teachers of English’s Promising Young Writers program, on the Speaker’s Bureau for the League of Utah Writers, and has been on the Middle Level and Young Adult Book Selection Committees for the Children’s Literature Association of Utah. Lu Ann served as coordinator for the Spanish Fork City Arts Council Writer’s Workshop and the Nebo Young Writer’s Conference. She is often called upon by church groups, book clubs, and other members of the local and state community to present workshops on literacy, give book reviews, or serve as a judge in writing contests. She has worked on district and state textbook and media adoption committees, as well as helping to write the previous state CORE for Secondary English Language Arts. Past-President of the Utah County League of Utah Writers and freelance editor for WriteWise, Deseret Book, and Covenant Communications, Lu Ann edits for several local and nationally published authors. She is currently a member of the Payson Jr. High School Accreditation team, and works for the One Heart Foundation and TheFamily.com.

Lu Ann has earned several awards and recognitions through her teaching career, including Nebo Reading Council Reading Teacher of the Year 2006, Christa McAuliffe Fellow Utah 1999, Utah English Language Arts Teacher of the Year 1999, Excellence in English/Language Arts Instruction 1999 from the Utah Writing Project, and Celebrate Literacy Award 1996 from the Utah Council IRA. She was selected for the USWest/UtahLINK Teacher Network Project 1995, the Marquis Who’s Who in American Education for several years, and has previously been nominated for both the Disney Hand Award for Outstanding Educators and the Huntsman Awards for Excellence in Education.

Beyond the classroom, Lu Ann continues to teach reading and writing to former students and the community at large. Through her two weekly newspaper columns, "Read All About It" and "Out of the Best Books," Lu Ann shares her love of books and her expertise when it comes to literacy issues. In addition, she writes two subscriber-based e-zines, several blogs, and publishes book reviews in three national educator magazines, Library Media Connection, The SIGNAL Journal, and The ALAN Review. She has taught classes and workshops for her school, district, and state organizations, including her popular workshop “Recipe for the Reluctant Reader.” As a Senior Editor for the Precision Editing Group, she teaches Mastery Writing classes for BookWise Publishing. Her own publication record in the area of education includes an invitational chapter in Teaching Ideas for 7-12 English Language Arts: What Really Works (Christopher-Gordon Publishers), Books, Books, and More Books: A Parent and Teacher’s Guide to Contemporary Adolescent Literature, and Teaching Secondary English: One Day at a Time, as well as featured articles in the Utah English Journal.

Past-President of the Utah Council of the Teachers of English Language Arts and the League of Utah Writers, Lu Ann currently serves on the board of the Nebo Reading Council and the UVSC Forum on Children’s Literature. Through her newspaper column and personal donations, she helped the Nebo Reading Council build a library collection for the Nebo School District Young Mother’s School in 2008.