CCS teacher Carol Hess to retire after 40 years

■ Editor’s note: This is the first of several stories on the retirement of long-time CCS teachers.

Carol Hess will be retiring at the end of this school year after 40 years as an educator for SPED (special education) students at Chase County Schools (CCS).
When beginning her career, her first four years were spent in the SPED service unit in Columbus for  grades K-8.
She then moved to Imperial, becoming a SPED teacher for grades 7-12, and more recently, 9-12.
She chose special education as a career partly because of her brother who she observed not being served very well as they were growing up, Hess said.
“I watched my brother struggle all through school,” she said.
She also attended a camp for handicapped adults, and between that experience and her brother, she made her career decision.
In the early years, teachers had no knowledge of how to teach these students, she said.
In an online article “All Education Schools,” a brief timeline of special education history  said the first advocacy groups to fight for quality special education were made up of parents whose children were marginalized as far back as 1933.
In the 1960s, multiple laws were passed granting funds for special education students.
Over the next few decades, a number of substantial revisions were made including changes by the Learning Disabilities Association (LDA) ensuring that all students with disabilities would receive an appropriate public education.
“While I was in college, the special education movement looked at students as mentally handicapped rather than including students that were not mentally handicapped, but rather those with learning disabilities, as well,” Hess said.
A nationwide push occurred partly because parents pressured educators to look into updating educational techniques for SPED students, she said.
This push resulted in laws being passed that would ensure students with different types of disabilities received quality public education, she added.
For 40 years, Hess has been an integral part of SPED at CCS.
After her retirement this spring, Hess said she plans to do some traveling.
“My son lives in San Diego, California, and my mom, two sisters and a brother live in Pennsylvania,” she said.
“I don’t have any grandchildren yet, but I’m hoping,” she laughed.
She mentioned she likes quilting, and she is looking forward to having more time to spend on that.
Along with that, she added, she “suspects” she’ll find things in the community that need doing.
When asked if she would remain in Imperial, she said, “I moved here 40 years ago, and within two years, I knew I was home.”
Hess said this community has a lot of good people.
“I appreciate all the parents and students I have worked with over the years,” she said.