Teacher of the Year Speaks at Kendal

April 21, 2022 —
Ohio teacher Kurt Russell was named 2022 National Teacher of the Year on Tuesday, April 19th. Russell is a history teacher at Oberlin High School and was interviewed by resident Kathy Hazelton at Kendal on Thursday, April 14th, when he was still a finalist for the recognition. The interview highlighted Russell’s curriculum, current challenges, and his outreach beyond the classroom, including collaborations with Oberlin College, Oberlin Heritage Center and coaching basketball. The audience for the interview at Kendal included residents and some of Russell’s students who are also employees of Kendal. When asked why he chose to teach in Oberlin, he said:

“My family raised me, but Oberlin shaped me. Oberlin provided the values that I cherish; respect for others, to be responsible, hard work. That’s the DNA of people from Oberlin and I just realized that since Oberlin really helped me to become a pretty decent person, I want to give back.”

Kendal at Oberlin congratulates Russell on this monumental achievement. You can view the CBS News interview with Kurt Russell where the announcement was made that he is the National Teacher of the Year for 2022.

Located in Oberlin, Ohio, Kendal at Oberlin is a nonprofit life plan community serving older adults in the Quaker tradition.