Kristin Schourek

Kristin  Schourek
  • MS Applied Science Education 2003
Kristin Schourek earned a bachelor's degree in Art Education from Wayne State University in 1973 and returned home to Hancock, Michigan, to begin a career as a public school teacher. Throughout her career, she engaged in graduate course work at Michigan Tech and was one of the first three graduate students to receive a master's in Applied Science Education in 2003.

After a year of substitute teaching, Schourek accepted a contract with the Hancock Public Schools, and with the exception of a year teaching in the public schools of Mikkeli, Finland, she has continued to work in Hancock. She has dedicated herself to the schools, students, staff, and community. Early in her career, Schourek became a union leader at the local, regional, and state levels. She currently serves as the President of the Copper Country Education Association, MEA Region 18, and as a delegate to both the Michigan and National Education Association Representative Assemblies. She has served on the MEA Board of Directors and several state commissions and committees.

Schourek has also served on State Department of Education advisory committees, including the committee that revised the most recent MTTC teacher certification test for Biology. One of her most satisfying professional appointments was as an examiner for NCATE, the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. She is passionate about continually improving the quality of teacher training and serves as an adjunct instructor in Finlandia's elementary education program, sits on Michigan Tech's Teacher Advisory Committee, and has mentored more than two dozen of Michigan Tech's student teachers.

Her primary area of expertise is in the biological sciences, but she is also a certified K-12 art teacher and a part-time professional photographer. She is the long-time secretary for the Copper Country Community Arts Council Board of Directors and remains active in the local arts community. One of Schourek's most enjoyable activities is serving as the host of "The Educational Corner," a biweekly radio talk show covering all aspects of public education - she has served in this capacity for the past twenty-two years.

Schourek currently teaches Biology, AP Biology, Anatomy & Physiology, and Art at Hancock High School.

She is the proud mother of two daughters, Sylvia and Anna Liisa, and enjoys living the country life on forty acres of land in Liminga in the log home she and her late husband, Brad ('73), built together.

Schourek was inducted into the Presidential Council of Alumnae in April 2009.


Excerpted from the 2009 Presidential Council of Alumnae Program