At the close of this school year, Evon Mittelstadt will have seen over 800 students graduate from the 8th grade, with 728 of those students being from Edgerton Christian Elementary/Southwest Christian Elementary. 

Evon Mittelstadt grew up in Edgerton. Her parents are the Alvina and the late Orvin Schoolmeester. She was a student at ECES and SWCH, graduating in 1975. 

Evon enjoyed school and loved sports. When Darrel Ulferts, who was a teacher at SWC for 35 years, encouraged her to become a teacher, she was interested. Other teachers also encouraged her. She was hesitant, because she was not a patient person, but over the years, being a teacher taught her patience.

Evon married Brad Mittelstadt in 1978 and graduated from St. Cloud State University in 1980 with a double major in elementary education and heath education.  However, for the next few years she worked in accounting for a trucking company and a car dealership. In 1990, Brad took a job building a hog facility in Fontana, California. Evon found a job teaching at a Lutheran school there. 

The couple stayed there for two years, but wanted to come back home to Minnesota. There were openings at both Leota Christian and ECES at the time, so Evon applied at both schools and was hired by ECES to teach math and PE for the lower elementary grades.  Brad went to work in construction. 

She taught the lower elementary grades for about three years before she moved into teaching language arts to 7th and 8th graders. She has been guiding students through spelling, grammar, literature, and English, ever since! In addition to teaching, she also coached volleyball, basketball, and track for many years. 

“Seventh and eighth grade is a great age,” Evon said. “I just love this age.”

Reading is a big part of her curriculum each year. She has her students read four or five books each year.  Her favorite book to read with her 8th grade students is The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, which is the true story of a Dutch woman and her family’s work with the Dutch Resistance during the Nazi invasion. 

For her 7th grade students, her favorite book is A Night Divided by Jennifer Nielsen. This book is historical fiction and tells the story of a family suddenly divided by the Berlin Wall. 

Evon said she is always impressed by the mature discussions she and her students can have about these books. She is also impressed by the maturity of faith she sees in students, even at such a young age.

Evon has always stressed the importance of hard work. She wants her students to see that if you want something in life – whether that is academics, music, athletics, or even relationships – you have to work for it. In the past few years, she has especially noticed that her students are serious about their education and goals. 

She also stressed love and respect for others. She is always encouraged when she sees those qualities in her students. 

“People say kids have changed,” she said, “But I do not see that.”