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Southwest High School ag instructor Educator of the Year
BARTLEY, Neb. -- The 2016 recipient of the McCook Area Educator of the Year grew up hearing his dad preach constantly about the benefits of education.
"He used to say, you can lose everything else in life, but one thing you can't lose is an education," said Les Roggenkamp Thursday night, after receiving the McCook Area Educator of Year award from Linda Wood, representing the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce.
The agriculture instructor at Southwest High School for the past 25 years, Roggenkamp was visibly surprised with the recognition presented during a students' award ceremony and thanked teachers Lynn Harris and Mary Foster for their guidance and example.
Growing up the youngest of 10 kids, Roggenkamp said his father never had the opportunity to further his education, but quit high school to help out on the farm when his older brother was drafted in World War II.
His father received his diploma later in life but never forget the importance of getting an education.
As a result, Roggenkamp grew up in a household of teachers-in-the-making. He started kindergarten when his oldest sibling began teaching elementary school and later, Roggenkamp's older brother was his ag teacher for awhile. Of the 10 children his parents raised, seven attended and graduated from college, one received his certificate from a trade school and another worked for the Dean of Agriculture at Kansas State University for over 30 years.
Roggenkamp graduated from Kansas State in 1991 and started teaching at Republican Valley High School, now Southwest High School. He is the FFA advisor, head track coach, assistant wrestling coach and the vice president of the Southwest Public Schools Foundation. He's also been a volunteer Indianola, Neb. firefighter and ambulance driver.
Roggenkamp's dedication for students is evident in a letter written in support of his nomination, that stated not only is he willing to do anything to support any student or activity in school, but that "he doesn't just teach agriculture, he teaches 'life.'"
Roggenkamp said Thursday he wasn't sure what he would do with the monetary compensation that comes with the Educator of the Year award, but thought he might use it toward getting his master's degree.
The McCook Educator of the Year award was established in 1998 with a monetary gift by Allen Strunk, former owner and publisher of the McCook Gazette, to the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce. Each year, students, colleagues, and community members from Dundy, Chase, Hitchcock, Hayes, Red Willow, Frontier, and Furnas counties in Nebraska, and Decatur and Rawlins counties in Kansas can nominate outstanding teachers for this award.
From those nominations, the Chamber's education committee selects an educator who motivates students to reach their highest potential, demonstrates a commitment to teaching and compassion to students and shows involvement in the community.