ROCHESTER – In the 10 days since her selection as an exceptional teacher by the Milken Family Foundation, Sue Nielsen has been dealing with life as a minor celebrity.

Friday, October 26, 2001

ROCHESTER – In the 10 days since her selection as an exceptional teacher by the Milken Family Foundation, Sue Nielsen has been dealing with life as a minor celebrity.

Nielsen, a 1974 graduate of Albert Lea High School, has been flooded with phone calls from the media, well-wishers, former colleagues, student and parents – all congratulating her for the honor and the $25,000 prize that accompanies it.

&uot;I’m a public school teacher. This kind of attention is new to me,&uot; she said

Nielsen teaches sixth-grade math and language arts at Kellogg Middle School in Rochester. She employs an emerging teaching model called &uot;continuous improvement&uot; that involves intensive testing and charting to keep track of student progress and individualize the curriculum to fit different learning paces and styles.

&uot;In the four years I’ve been doing this, I can really see it working. I’m on the same page with each one of my students,&uot; Nielsen said.

Students participate in the &uot;continuous improvement&uot; process by setting individual goals and helping with the charting. Nielsen said it gives them a visual sense of their learning and helps them take more responsibility.

&uot;You should see how this works during parent/teacher conferences. I don’t have to do much talking at all because each student has all of these charts and data to show progress and areas in need of improvement,&uot; she said.

Nielsen’s success and the progress of her students apparently caught the eye of somebody from the Milken Family Foundation, which won’t accept nominations or applications like most teacher awards. The foundation chooses instead to send out its representatives across the country to search for the best teachers, all in complete secrecy. Milken awards will be given to 120 teachers in 44 states this year.

Nielsen received the award at a surprise assembly last week that included several top education officials.

Christine Jax, Minnesota’s education commissioner, made the announcement.

&uot;My students cheered and cheered. It was a wonderful surprise,&uot; Nielsen said. &uot;I still can’t believe it.&uot;

This summer Nielsen will attend a gathering in California with other Milken award winners to accept her prize. She does not know yet how she will spend the money.

&uot;My students have suggested everything from a disco ball to a hot tub. I’m taking all of their ideas under consideration,&uot; Nielsen said.

Being a teacher was not the plan for Nielsen (formerly Sue Stiles) when she graduated from high school. Nursing was her career choice, and she worked for 17 years as a nurse before switching careers.

Nielsen’s husband Jim is also from Albert Lea. He works at Mayo Clinic.