For Clearview Elementary School fourth-grade teacher Andrea Coulter, Tuesday was a regular day at school, with an assembly at the end to add a bit of variety to the schedule. As such, she was more than a little surprised when Principal Sheri Rutar asked her to step to the front of the room for a moment.
At that point, two smiling women walked out of the wings and presented her with a bouquet of flowers and a document, which generated a moment of surprise followed by a broad smile from Coulter as the duo informed her that she and her fourth-grade class have been named as the recipients of the 2014 Community Partnership Award by the Care providers of Minnesota organization.
The presenters were Hilary Studenski from St. Benedict’s Senior Community in St. Cloud and Christine Bakke, Care Providers Care Center Administrator.
Coulter and her students have been taking part in an intergenerational program at St. Benedict’s for the past five years. The students and their teacher travel to the facility to meet with residents, reading books, playing games and working on craft projects with them.
The award will be presented to Coulter and her students during the Keynote session at the 2014 Care Providers of Minnesota annual convention at the Double Tree Hilton in Bloomington, 2 p.m. on Tue., Nov. 18. The program will also include a video of Coulter and her students “in action” at St. Benedict’s.
According to the award citation, the Community Partnership Award “recognizes the efforts of a Care Providers of Minnesota member to create a partnership with a community group or organization that is typically outside of the care profession. The partnership improvise the quality of life for residents/tenants/clients/staff and/or volunteers.”
