Sally Jo Michalko, Class of 1970 Following graduation, Ms. Michalko attended UW-Whitewater, completing a BS degree in education in 1974. She earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from Aurora University in 1997. Sally Jo began her teaching career in 1975 not far from where she graduated-just down the hill at Whittier Elementary School-when she was hired to teach first grade. Remaining with the School District of Waukesha, she transferred to Meadowbrook Elementary in 1983 and continues to teach first graders. However, she also serves as Chair of the Elementary Social Studies Department for our school district. Throughout her career, Ms. Michalko has maintained active involvement in professional organizations. She is a member of the Education Association of Waukesha, having served as Vice President and as a member of the TriWauk Uniserv Council Board of Directors. She is also a member of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the National Education Association, Phi Delta Kappa and the Japan-American Society of Wisconsin. Her interest in the social studies lead her to join the Wisconsin Council for the Social Studies, and she has been the Executive Director of that organization since 1990. In addition, she has served on the Board of Directors of the National Council for the Social Studies, providing a needed voice for elementary teachers. Sally Jo has received several awards, including three fellowships for travel/study in Japan. She was part of a Sister City Delegation from Waukesha to Kokchetau, Kazakhstan, and also worked with a group of educators in a Partnership School in Chichicastenango, Guatemala. Sally Jo's travels have taken her to forty countries on six continents and enabled her to learn about many cultures. She has shared her enthusiasm and knowledge with students across the School District of Waukesha by developing a series of "Discovery Boxes." Each contains multisensory items representing various aspects of the culture. By exploring these items, children become eager to learn more. Well versed in the area of teaching standards, Sally Jo was invited to serve on a task force through the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction that developed Wisconsin's Model Academic Standards for the Social Studies. A lesson she developed, Nan De Ikimasho Ka? (How Shall We Go?) was published in 1997 in Tora No Maki II: Lessons for Teaching About Contemporary Japan. In addition, she has developed and contributed curriculum material to numerous publications of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.