Retiring Lincoln Teachers Have 100 Years of Experience
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
First-grade teachers Becky Grill and Carolyn Parrett are retiring with 40 and 35 years of teaching experience respectively, and Maria Babanskyj is retiring with about 25 years. Babanskyj teaches fifth- and sixth-grade gifted students.
During an interview with all three women Monday morning, they talked about their lives and love for Lincoln.
Parrett originally is from Mansfield, Ohio. Her father moved to this area to work at Grace College. She graduated from high school in 1964, and then Grace in 1969.
Grill, from Gary, also graduated from Grace College.
Babanskyj was born in Germany.
“My parents were Holocaust survivors. My father was Ukrainian and my mother was Russian. If my parents hadn’t survived, I wouldn’t be here,” she said.
She and her family moved to Caracas, Venezuela, then to New York City when she was 10. She went to Hunter College in NYC, then moved to New Jersey. She was married and became a stay-at-home mom.
“Before that, I worked in business, including the Museum of Art. When my children went to school, I volunteered and fell in love with teaching,” Babanskyj said.
She earned her master’s degree in education, then they moved to North Carolina. Half of the student population was gifted students, so Babanskyj earned her gifted certification. She and her family then moved to the Warsaw area.
Babansky’s first job for Warsaw Community Schools was in 2000 at Eisenhower Elementary.
“Then God loved me so much he sent me to Lincoln,” she said. That was in 2004. “This is the best place in the whole world. It’s the best kept secret.”
When Parrett graduated from Grace in 1969, “My mom and I graduated together,” she said.
Parrett got her first teaching job at Silver Lake/Claypool in 1969. She taught under then-Principal Gene England for four years. She started her own family, going on maternity leave at Lincoln. She later got back into teaching through substitution.
“My (class) room is my mom’s old room,” Parrett said.
When she was teaching fourth grade, her mother taught first grade at Lincoln.
When Parrett’s mother died in 1982, Parrett was asked if she wanted her mother’s old room and to teach first grade. She said yes.
After graduating from Grace in 1968, Grill taught fifth grade for three years at Nappanee. She then taught kindergarten for two years at Pierceton.
When Grill was hired at the former McKinley Elementary School on Scott Street, she took Parrett’s mother’s former kindergarten class. She moved to Lincoln when McKinley was closed.
“This is my 40th year of teaching,” Grill said. “I just got my 35th year pin from Warsaw.”
“We go way back,” Parrett said of the friendship between herself and Grill.
“Together, we have 75 years of teaching between us,” Grill said.
“It was probably different for Maria because her class is more self contained. Carolyn and I and our first-grade team always pushed collaboration. The hardest thing (about retiring) for Carolyn and I is leaving our team,” Grill said.
Babanskyj said she felt she and her ideas were ignored at Eisenhower. When she moved over to Lincoln, she felt embraced by the other teachers. Others picked up her ideas and implemented them as their own.
“I always felt their support and it was encouraging,” she said.
Grill said a strong suit of Lincoln is that it’s a very welcoming school. Many substitutes have commented on how welcoming the school is, she said.
“The bottom line is, Lincoln works as a team. Our principal, Cathy Snyder, has a way of bringing us together as a team,” said Parrett.
“We have very little fluff here,” Grill said. “Our accommodations are very minimal. We don’t have any extra. We have very few parents who work in the orthopedic business. Most of our families are very blue collar. It makes our school work harder, but we’re willing to do it.”
“Our PTO has gone above and beyond the call of duty,” added Parrett. “They’re tops. They really are.”
Parrett said a lot of students at Lincoln are special needs, but the other students are very understanding. If there’s an issue with a special needs student, the other children just keep working away.
“We’re very proud of our school,” said Grill. “We’ve gone from a school on probation to a blue ribbon school. Our ISTEP scores are now some of the highest.”
Babanskyj said some of Lincoln’s students are a little “unkempt.” You look at some of the children, she said, and you just want to take them home and take care of them. Yet, they’re very smart, she said, and that tells you that you don’t have to come from a home where you’re well kept to be a good student.
In their retirement, Parrett said she’s going to play some Pickleball and go camping. She and her husband have grandchildren to keep them busy.
Babanskyj’s daughter lives in North Carolina, and she plans to move there.
Grill plans to do some traveling and volunteering. She will play some tennis and work in her flower beds.
For the teachers who take their places, the three women offered some advice.
“Have fun,” Parrett said. “Work as a team. Don’t be afraid to ask parents for help. You’re going to have one or two parents that ask you what they can do. Take advantage of that.”
Grill said first-graders don’t know how to tell you that you’ve had an impact on them. But you’ll see it when they move from the sixth grade to the middle school. You’ll also see it on their test scores as they improve.
“I have college graduates that come back and give me a hug and tell me how I’ve impacted them,” Babanskyj said.
“I know of at least two from my first class at Lincoln that are now teachers,” Parrett said.
“In general,” Grill said, “here at Lincoln, for every teacher, expectations are high. No matter where you come from, we don’t change our expectations.”
“Teaching kids to read in first grade is probably our priority,” said Parrett.
“Lincoln is the greatest,” she said.
“We believe it,” concluded Grill.[[In-content Ad]]
First-grade teachers Becky Grill and Carolyn Parrett are retiring with 40 and 35 years of teaching experience respectively, and Maria Babanskyj is retiring with about 25 years. Babanskyj teaches fifth- and sixth-grade gifted students.
During an interview with all three women Monday morning, they talked about their lives and love for Lincoln.
Parrett originally is from Mansfield, Ohio. Her father moved to this area to work at Grace College. She graduated from high school in 1964, and then Grace in 1969.
Grill, from Gary, also graduated from Grace College.
Babanskyj was born in Germany.
“My parents were Holocaust survivors. My father was Ukrainian and my mother was Russian. If my parents hadn’t survived, I wouldn’t be here,” she said.
She and her family moved to Caracas, Venezuela, then to New York City when she was 10. She went to Hunter College in NYC, then moved to New Jersey. She was married and became a stay-at-home mom.
“Before that, I worked in business, including the Museum of Art. When my children went to school, I volunteered and fell in love with teaching,” Babanskyj said.
She earned her master’s degree in education, then they moved to North Carolina. Half of the student population was gifted students, so Babanskyj earned her gifted certification. She and her family then moved to the Warsaw area.
Babansky’s first job for Warsaw Community Schools was in 2000 at Eisenhower Elementary.
“Then God loved me so much he sent me to Lincoln,” she said. That was in 2004. “This is the best place in the whole world. It’s the best kept secret.”
When Parrett graduated from Grace in 1969, “My mom and I graduated together,” she said.
Parrett got her first teaching job at Silver Lake/Claypool in 1969. She taught under then-Principal Gene England for four years. She started her own family, going on maternity leave at Lincoln. She later got back into teaching through substitution.
“My (class) room is my mom’s old room,” Parrett said.
When she was teaching fourth grade, her mother taught first grade at Lincoln.
When Parrett’s mother died in 1982, Parrett was asked if she wanted her mother’s old room and to teach first grade. She said yes.
After graduating from Grace in 1968, Grill taught fifth grade for three years at Nappanee. She then taught kindergarten for two years at Pierceton.
When Grill was hired at the former McKinley Elementary School on Scott Street, she took Parrett’s mother’s former kindergarten class. She moved to Lincoln when McKinley was closed.
“This is my 40th year of teaching,” Grill said. “I just got my 35th year pin from Warsaw.”
“We go way back,” Parrett said of the friendship between herself and Grill.
“Together, we have 75 years of teaching between us,” Grill said.
“It was probably different for Maria because her class is more self contained. Carolyn and I and our first-grade team always pushed collaboration. The hardest thing (about retiring) for Carolyn and I is leaving our team,” Grill said.
Babanskyj said she felt she and her ideas were ignored at Eisenhower. When she moved over to Lincoln, she felt embraced by the other teachers. Others picked up her ideas and implemented them as their own.
“I always felt their support and it was encouraging,” she said.
Grill said a strong suit of Lincoln is that it’s a very welcoming school. Many substitutes have commented on how welcoming the school is, she said.
“The bottom line is, Lincoln works as a team. Our principal, Cathy Snyder, has a way of bringing us together as a team,” said Parrett.
“We have very little fluff here,” Grill said. “Our accommodations are very minimal. We don’t have any extra. We have very few parents who work in the orthopedic business. Most of our families are very blue collar. It makes our school work harder, but we’re willing to do it.”
“Our PTO has gone above and beyond the call of duty,” added Parrett. “They’re tops. They really are.”
Parrett said a lot of students at Lincoln are special needs, but the other students are very understanding. If there’s an issue with a special needs student, the other children just keep working away.
“We’re very proud of our school,” said Grill. “We’ve gone from a school on probation to a blue ribbon school. Our ISTEP scores are now some of the highest.”
Babanskyj said some of Lincoln’s students are a little “unkempt.” You look at some of the children, she said, and you just want to take them home and take care of them. Yet, they’re very smart, she said, and that tells you that you don’t have to come from a home where you’re well kept to be a good student.
In their retirement, Parrett said she’s going to play some Pickleball and go camping. She and her husband have grandchildren to keep them busy.
Babanskyj’s daughter lives in North Carolina, and she plans to move there.
Grill plans to do some traveling and volunteering. She will play some tennis and work in her flower beds.
For the teachers who take their places, the three women offered some advice.
“Have fun,” Parrett said. “Work as a team. Don’t be afraid to ask parents for help. You’re going to have one or two parents that ask you what they can do. Take advantage of that.”
Grill said first-graders don’t know how to tell you that you’ve had an impact on them. But you’ll see it when they move from the sixth grade to the middle school. You’ll also see it on their test scores as they improve.
“I have college graduates that come back and give me a hug and tell me how I’ve impacted them,” Babanskyj said.
“I know of at least two from my first class at Lincoln that are now teachers,” Parrett said.
“In general,” Grill said, “here at Lincoln, for every teacher, expectations are high. No matter where you come from, we don’t change our expectations.”
“Teaching kids to read in first grade is probably our priority,” said Parrett.
“Lincoln is the greatest,” she said.
“We believe it,” concluded Grill.[[In-content Ad]]
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