Saturday, October 29, 2011

Emily (Krehlik) Buck

Ms. McKenna was my English teacher during the 2000-2001 school year at JDHS.  Like many of my former classmates have pointed out she had rigorous expectations of her students.  She expected nothing less than the best, and that always meant best thinking and communication.  One of my most vivid memories in her class was about a particular poetry assignment.  Each student had to choose a poem and "interpret" it for the class (this is what I remember at least).  I had chosen a poem that vividly described a scene in a Jamaican market.  I remember wanting to meet her expectations, and the only things coming to mind to interpret the poem were tie-dyes and rainsticks.  In my mixed-up teenage brain I orchestrated a rather wild dance routine (cheerleader fashion) that involved me wearing a tie-dye outfit and counting the ryhthm of the poem with shakes of a rain stick.  Writing about it now, I can still feel my fear and embarrassement as I shared my interpretation of the poem with the class.  As I finished, I was shocked to see Ms. McKenna laughing hysterically and asking me to come back and do the same presentation for a second period and be videotaped!  As a teacher myself, I often think of this particular memory and remember how I felt honored to be sharing my work with my teacher and classmates.  Ms. McKenna had a way of creating a safe community space for students to share their wild and thoughtful work.  At the beginning of every school year I think of the importance of creating a safe community to share in, and Ms. McKenna and her class community come to mind.  She was a phenomenal teacher of students, and she's continuign to teach me, now as a teacher myself.

-Emily (Krehlik) Buck

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Molly Krehlik


I was very lucky to have Ms. McKenna as a teacher. She inspired her students to become excellent writers and encouraged them to become their own unique person.  My favorite memories of Ms. McKenna actually occurred outside the classroom. A few friends and I used to go skiing after school at the Mendenhall Lake campground. Ms. McKenna was learning to skate ski at the same time that we were learning to skate ski. We would often run in to her at the lake and flounder around trying to improve our skate skiing skills. I always thought it was so neat to run into my English teacher skiing on the lake!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Steven LeClercq

Mrs. Mckenna, better known to me as Ms. Gray was my 8th grade and 11th grade english teacher in Conyers, GA where I attended Salem High School. She was a true inspiration. She ignited a fire in me for literature that still burns true to this day. Even more special to me was the friendship I had with Ms. Gray. She gave me the strength to perserve through tough times in high school. She always pushed me to do my best. 

I am happy to see she has touched so many lives. She is one of the most giving people I have ever met. I would not be the person I am today without knowing her. 

One of my favorite memories is a class project we had to do for Romeo and Juilet. Each group had to record their interpretation of the story. We thought it was pretty cool. Ms. Gray also lead the initiative for a school paper in 1994 that talked openly about sex, politics, and freedom of speech. It ultimately got shut down, but she always encouraged everyone to find their own voice. 

Remember everyone A lot is two words!

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Mike James

I just found this thank-you sonnet I wrote in 2003 for Ali. Maybe it was in exchange for a college recommendation, maybe it was a poetry assignment from Karina Reyes, or maybe it was a simple thank-you. It's sloppy, naturally, but I'd forgotten the gratitude I had for her teaching. Some honesty from an otherwise angsty JDHS senior.

Rest in peace, Mrs. McKenna.

A Sonnet for Ali McKenna – 4/30/03
Michael James, Senior Year, JDHS

She made us read two books in summer sun:
A first impression ‘scribed to me in full!
I did not think I’d like this English Hun;
All literature to me was damn near dull.

Ali McKenna splayed her liter’ry sword
With Steinbeck, Burroughs, Keroac, Thoreau,
With Love, and all Sarcasm she could afford,
And slayed us! Oh! The joys we came to know!

A guiding hand, a watchful wond’ring eye,
A calm and thoughtful spirit ope’d my brain.
Her honesty, perception, all defy
The duties of a teacher not insane.

The Universe is smiling at my friend;
It knows that she’ll be Teaching ‘til her end.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Margaret Pitts

I too am from the Miss Gray generation of Salem High School class of 1997 who were privileged to have her teach us in three grades-8th, 9th and 11th. we were her first students- she must have been only 24 years old. she left us after junior year to go to alaska. she was the most important/influential teacher i ever had and i think many of my classmates would say the same thing. we are grieving in georgia and would love to know if there will be any sort of memorial service here so we can pay our respects. 

there are too many memories to recall but one in particular was when we went to washington dc for a 9th grade school trip and she let me play my mixed tape over the bus stereo system. when violent femmes' "blister in the sun" came on she ran over and said "do you know what this song is about??" i said "no" and she let it keep playing. RIP Miss Gray.

Friday, October 21, 2011

Chris Bryner


Ali’s reputation as a teacher is legendary and yet I really only knew her in her role as a parent.  I watched her one day at dinner blowing bubbles in her milk with her kids and I remember thinking, “this is the kind of parent I want to be.”

Chris Bryner
Room 20
Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary

Lynette Campbell

Want to share this portion of a private e-mail Ali sent me that exemplifies her magnificent passion for students:

"This propensity to label everyone really
bothers me because I have seen how powerful the self-fulfilling prophecy
is. They become what they are told they are: "regular" (what in the heck
does that mean?), "gifted" (I honestly believe everyone is gifted--just
some in ways that traditional educational systems don't value or
acknowledge). Some of my most astute thinkers were in the CHOICE program
for "at-risk" students (another absurd label) and some of my sloppiest
thinkers were in my senior AP course. I know I probably call on certain
students when the discussion is becoming insipid or repetitive , but I
try to encourage all voices.

Ali"

Sophia (Polasky) Lauer

I was fortunate enough to have Ms. McKenna for an English teacher twice- as a freshman in high school (at JDHS) and then again as a junior (in 98/99 and 2000/01). I could write many things about the way in which she inspired creativity, demanded excellence, or encouraged me to develop a voice... but what I remember most about Ms. McKenna is that every morning, as we stood to pledge allegiance to the flag, Ms. McKenna would pledge allegiance to her son. Her priorities have always been with people, and I feel lucky to have been one of those people to have benefited from her attention.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Annie (Fox) Albrecht

  Ms. McKenna was my English teacher for school years ’98-’99 and ’00-’01. When I think of her and the times that I spent in her classroom, my brain is flooded with memories and it is nearly impossible to know which ones to list. And, as I write this, I feel the pressure to write well. It was a pressure I always felt in her class, but one that I accepted eagerly. I always wanted to give her my best work...my best self.
  Recently, I moved back to Juneau and was cleaning out all my ‘junk’ that I still had in my parents’ house. I found that I had saved nearly every writing assignment from Ms. McKenna’s class. I spent hours poring over the things I had written 10+ years ago. With each piece I came across, vivid memories returned to me, including where I sat, the way I felt, the things that were said, and presentations I gave or watched. I have never taken a class either before or since that impacted me so profoundly.
   Ms. McKenna always asked a lot of us, but never to please herself. The purpose of her ways, I believe, was to teach us how to dig deep within ourselves and find who we truly were and what we were capable of.  Through the written word, she provided an outlet for our mixed-up teenaged brains. It is clear to me that this ‘tool’ will be valuable to me my entire life, as I use it even now, to help make sense of a great life lost.

Misty (Graham) Kuveikis


Hi,
My name is Misty and I was a student of Allison. At my school Salem High School in Conyers Georgia in the very early 90s we had a cool young teacher fresh out of college her name was Ms. Gray back then. I was fortunate enough to experience her as an educator her first year teaching. I remember thinking wow she is only 22 nine years older than me. Her English class was the only one that I was ever in that empowered me as a writer. Anytime I wanted to bend the rules of an assignment she was always open to that and eager to see what would be created. We all knew she moved and she is one of the only teachers we all had that we actually tried to keep up with. From SHS class of 97 Ali we love you!

Misty (Graham) Kuveikis

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Callie Conerton

Being a student of Alison Mckenna's was a honor. Her classroom was always filled with students who wanted to learn and wanted to be in the classroom, which is rare for any group of high school students. I was one of the few students who was bold enough to call her Ali, she was always shaking her head at me but I still did it. The way I was raised you call a teacher by the first name to show respect. After the 5th time of explaining this to her she gave up trying to push my will. In her classroom I got to create works of art from ceiling tiles, poems, songs to a artistic performance or two. I experienced sugar plum fairies, superman, shouting profound words at the top of my lungs and a talk about condoms and how they relate to parents, in her classroom. Nothing was off limits and as a student filled with questions, it was the perfect environment. We would have days where we played the hot seat and asked one person a bunch of different questions, sometimes Ali stopped the questions but it was rare. We got into heated discussions on every topic and we were made to feel like a family. After that first year of high school, I saw Ali all over town with her kids and friends. She always made a point to smile and wave back at me and sometimes just sat and talked for a while. She was disorganized to say the least but in the mess there was a sane reason, it was the Ali McKenna method of organization. Although sometimes it took a couple minutes to find a paper or two, you could not help but smile and laugh along with her mutters on, " it was right here, it is somewhere I know it" She was my favorite high school teacher hands down and I always will think of her when I look back to the days at Juneau Douglas. She inspired me and challenged me in every day things. She showed passion with all of her students and treated them with respect. There will never be a end to how much I could write on Ali or how many moments we shared together. however  this phrase seems fitting, Alison McKenna was a Captain, my Captain.

Callie Conerton

Rachel (Chenoweth) Pereira

Ms. McKenna was my Advanced English teacher my freshmen ('99) and junior years ('01) and my A.P. English teacher my senior year ('02). I started out barely being able to write a 5 paragraph essay. She taught me pretty much everything I know about literature and essay writing. But lots of English teachers teach that stuff. What set Ms. McKenna above the rest was her passion for superior education. She taught me how to really think about themes and symbolism in literature. She taught me to make connections and apply them to my life. She challenged me, not only with coursework, but with my beliefs and made me defend them. She didn't often agree with my point of view, but she wanted to hear what I had to say and my justifications. She never told me I was wrong or belittled me. She respected me. Therefore, I felt empowered with my opinions. She made me feel important. She wasn't a lecturer. She was a professional discussion-cultivator. She was sarcastic, which was refreshing in comparison to other teachers. She was hard. She expected a lot of me. She wanted me to succeed. My senior year, I didn't get very good grades in her class, because I stopped caring so much about school. That bothered her, and she told me so. I don't think disappointing someone ever felt so shameful, as it did with her.

When she was pregnant with her 2nd child, a couple of friends and I went up to her after class to congratulate her. She thanked us but confessed, she thought it was silly to congratulate someone on pregnancy, because "It like saying, congratulations on successful sex!" That has always made me laugh, and I think of that quote each time I've been pregnant.

I remember she had us read a classic book my freshmen year, "Catcher in the Rye". It was one of her favorites. I, however, hated it! I can't even remember why I hated it so much, but I told her I didn't like it. Instead of trying to change my mind, she challenged me to write a well-justified persuasive essay why I didn't think it was good literature. So I did! I got an "A" on that paper, even though I know she disagreed with every argument I made.

My senior year, for my final project, I did a painting for her. It was of a girl with her lips sewed shut, but the stitches were being cut with a pair of scissors held by a hand-- Ms. McKenna's hand. It was symbolic of the freedom she gave me (and really all of her students) to express my opinions while in her class. Everyone was safe and accepted there. A couple years ago I went to visit her class and the painting was still there! She told me it always evoked strong reactions... some liked it, some hated it. I think she kept it around because of the controversy it created.

There is a quote that perfectly encapsulates what I felt Ms. McKenna accomplished as a teacher for me:

"It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge." -Albert Einstein

-Rachel (Chenoweth) Pereira, 2003 Graduate of JDHS

Monday, October 17, 2011

The Purpose...

The purpose of this blog is to communicate memories and gratitude for an influential teacher in the lives of so many of her students. Ms. McKenna taught English at Juneau-Douglas High School from 1997-2011. She died, unexpectedly, in her home on on Saturday, October 15th, 2011. I can't imagine the pain her family is feeling, but especially the heartache and confusion her two children must be feeling. It was with them in mind, that I felt compelled to create this blog, in order to compile memories, thoughts, thank you notes, pictures, or just ways that her life changed yours for the better. Once everyone who desires to, has contributed, I will publish all the posts into a book and send it to her children. My hope is that through reading these compilations they may catch a glimpse of what it was like to be her student, and to also learn of the legacy she created through passionate teaching.

To contribute (and I hope you will!) email me at: brpereira@gmail.com with the subject title, Ms. McKenna, and I will publish it promptly.