2001 Michigan Teacher of the Year
Ms. Garretson is a special education teacher at Pleasant Lake School in West Bloomfield, Michigan. She has been teaching for nine years and is currently teaching all subjects to grades three to five Special Education students.

What are your beliefs about teaching?
"I believe there is a "healthy piece" that exists within each of the high-risk students with whom I work. Only through the development of a positive, personal relationship with my students can I help them gain understanding and control over themselves."

How are your beliefs incorporated in your teaching style?
"I believe in the notion of "challenge" and using real-life opportunities to help students learn to make good choices. I facilitate adventurous, educational activities in the classroom and help my students transfer a new understanding of themselves into their academic and home lives."

What is your greatest teaching accomplishment?
"One of my greatest accomplishments as a teacher was being able to work for four years with a boy who had a violent home life and watching him grow. He is now in the eleventh grade, no longer in special education, and is headed for college."

What's the most critical issue facing educators today and what do you think can be done to resolve this issue?
"I believe the most critical issue facing educators today is achieving professional accountability – providing quality education from certified professionals for children from low-income areas. New teachers need to be properly mentored, supported and monitored. They should be anticipating what type of job training and employment opportunities may be required for the future and then preparing students to meet those future demands."

Inspirational thought:
"Teachers can choose to be "workers" or "leaders". "Leaders" have the profound opportunity to re-create the teaching profession and shape the future."