Sandra Peer '88 loves teaching, people and math. Small wonder then that she enjoys being a math teacher so much.
Since fall 2007, Peer has been an educator at her alma mater, where she teaches math, statistics and math curriculum to the instructors of tomorrow. “It’s in my blood,” she says of teaching. As a student herself, Peer didn’t have a math phobia, viewing it instead as “a great discipline.”
Peer has been teaching since 1975. Prior to joining WSU’s faculty, she taught at Wichita High School Northwest, where her enthusiasm and skill in her chosen calling earned her honors as a Teacher of the Year in the 12th annual Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club State Teacher of the Year program.
The honor came with a number of prizes, including a $10,000 grant that went to Northwest. Peer says winning the award was a team effort. “There is no way something like this comes by itself,” she says. “There are some great people (at Northwest) and it was very exciting for me to be able to share this with them.”
Today, she is just as excited to be teaching at WSU, especially with pre-service teachers, or those about to enter the field of math education, where there is a shortage of qualified professionals. She believes in the “Three Rs” of education: rigor, relevance and relationship.
Developing all three is key to success, she says and adds: “I can’t imagine a better job for me. I get a real kick out of seeing students reach their math potential.”
