A Greene County High School teacher recently received recognition for his long-standing service to education.

Vocal Director David Heupel earned the Teacher Tenure Award from the Iowa High School Music Association during the All-State Music Festival in Ames. He says educators are eligible for this honor for those that taught high school music for at least 30 years and he is in his 31st year. Heupel shares what can happen to teachers when they stay that long in education.

“I just noticed that there’s more and more students whose parents I’ve taught. So you know, when we have people come up for the ‘Hallelujah’ chorus (during the Dessert Concert) there’s a lot of parents that come up that I had. So, it happens more and more often.” 

Heupel explains one of his favorite parts of teaching is seeing students participate in the All-State Music Festival.

“Just because it’s a chance for students to get to really work on some tough stuff, and then they have a goal in mind, so they’re really working at getting better. And whether they’re successful or not, the success they achieve over those few months is really, really something else. And then to be rewarded, to be able to go to that festival, it’s just a great experience to achieve, there’s always a nice spring in leadership from those students that go to that when we come back as well.”  

Heupel adds that his first four years of teaching choir was at East Buchanan High School and that the last 27 years have been at Jefferson-Scranton and Greene County High School.