National Teacher of the Year Kurt Russell ’94 to offer Commencement address to Class of 2023
National Teacher of the Year and alumnus Kurt Russell ’94 will deliver the Commencement address and receive an honorary degree from The College of Wooster during the Commencement Ceremony for the Class of 2023 on Saturday, May 13, 2023, at 1 p.m. in Gault Recreation Center inside the Scot Center.
Named National Teacher of the Year in spring 2022 by the Council of Chief State School Officers, Russell traveled to Washington, D.C. to receive the award at the White House last spring and has been engaged in policy discussions at the state and national levels, advocating for the teaching profession and for students across the country throughout the past year. During his tenure, he spoke with the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions; the National Education Association; and National Parent Teacher Association, among others.
A 25-year veteran of the classroom, Russell teaches history and is head coach of varsity boys’ basketball at Oberlin High School in Oberlin, Ohio, where he was born and raised. He also serves as faculty advisor for the student-led Black Student Union. First inspired to become a teacher in middle school when he encountered his first Black male teacher, Russell is advocating for classrooms to better reflect the students within them—from a curriculum that reflects their backgrounds and identities to a more diverse teaching profession.
In a time when many are trying to quiet diverse voices and gloss over atrocities of the past, Russell is standing up for independence of thought and exemplifying social and intellectual responsibility. His classes include African American history, which he has taught since the late 1990s, and Race, Gender and Oppression, a class he developed. Part of his inspiration for the course came from an African politics course at Wooster with Akwasi Osei, then assistant professor of political science and Black studies, and an intro to Black studies course with then associate professor of sociology Terry Kershaw. After completing his Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in history and a minor in Black studies at Wooster, Russell earned a Master of Education in curriculum and instruction from Ashland University. He continues to take courses in child development at Oakland City University.
The 2023 Commencement Ceremony at the College also will include speakers from the Class of 2023 who have been nominated by their peers as having made an impact on the Wooster community during their time on campus. Speakers include Ethan Dasilva, Zoe Seymore, and Britta Treu.
Ethan Dasilva, majoring in political science (comparative politics) and education, is from Morton Grove, Illinois. During his time at Wooster, Dasilva was a teaching assistant for the Political Science Department, a member of the swim team (backstroke and freestyle), secretary of Scot Council and a member of the Social Justice and Equity Council, and president of Wooster Future Educators. Dasilva’s Independent Study is titled, “How Does a City’s Migrant Identities Affect Urban Governments’ Implementation of Affordable Housing Policies?” Next fall, Dasilva plans to teach 5th grade STEM outside of Evanston, Illinois.
Zoe Seymore, majoring in psychology and minoring in math and Chinese is from Fort Worth, Texas. At Wooster, Seymore has been involved as secretary of the BIPOC Performing Arts Alliance, a member of the COW Dance Company, Women of Images, and is co-founder and co-president of Wooster Adoptee Student Union. She also helped to organize the March for Asian Lives protest on campus in spring 2021. Seymore’s I.S. is titled, “Overlooked Adoptees: The Effects of COVID-19 Racism and Ethnic Identity on the Psychological Well-Being of Chinese Transracial Adoptees in the United States.” After graduation, Seymore will be heading to Taiwan to be an English teaching assistant with the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Upon returning to the U.S., she plans to attend graduate school to be able to work in a clinical setting with adoptees and Asian Americans.
Britta Treu, majoring in communication studies, minoring in music, and pursuing a pathway in entrepreneurship, is from Auburn Township, Ohio. Treu is a four-year member and senior co-captain of Women’s Lacrosse, first chair and trumpet section leader in Scot Marching and Symphonic bands, a member of Shades of Gold a capella group and communication club, and president of Wooster Christian Fellowship. She also has received the Theodore Williams Prize in Music. The title of her I.S. is “Face to Face: Finding Confidence in my Voice in a Technology-Centered Generation.” After Wooster, Treu hopes to pursue her masters in communications and eventually work in broadcasting. Her immediate entrepreneurial motivation is to create her own lacrosse business for young women in Cleveland and northern Maine.
Approximately 480 students are expected to receive degrees from Wooster. Interim President Wayne P. Webster will welcome those gathered for the ceremony, an invocation will be shared by Trustee Diane Holt Frankle ’75 and the benediction will be provided by Rev. Joy E. Bronson ’07. Seniors and families who don’t come to campus will be able to access livestreams of many Commencement events as well as digital programs. For more information on the full schedule of events and guest services, visit the Commencement website at wooster.edu/commencement.
Posted in News on April 5, 2023.
