{"id":1731,"date":"2019-10-15T15:40:15","date_gmt":"2019-10-15T15:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/?p=1731"},"modified":"2021-07-14T19:01:16","modified_gmt":"2021-07-14T19:01:16","slug":"couple-of-educators-dan-kathy-wheeler-fund-scholarship-for-future-teachers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/?p=1731","title":{"rendered":"Couple of educators: Dan & Kathy Wheeler fund scholarship for future teachers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Dan
Dan and Kathy Wheeler<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Jeff Wilson<\/p>\n

Dan and Kathy Wheeler\u2019s passion for Southern Illinois University may only be eclipsed by their passion for education.<\/p>\n

\u201cSIU is part of the family,\u201d said Kathy Wheeler. \u201cWe know it\u2019s the primary resource for students from southern Illinois to get a higher education and become teachers. That\u2019s where our hearts lie.\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple has established the Bryan-Peak Endowed Scholarship, which benefits students in the College of Education and Human Services. The name of the scholarship honors the couple\u2019s maternal grandparents, Robert and Edith Sellars Bryan and Alexander and Marvel Klasing Peak, as well as Kathy\u2019s mother, Lou Ellen Peak Reagan.<\/p>\n

Both families have strong ties to the region, university and education profession. The Bryans were from southern Illinois and lived most of their lives there, and the Peaks spent their adult lives in Herrin. Lou Ellen was born in Herrin, worked as a school secretary at Southside Elementary and Herrin Junior High School and was a graduate of SIU\u2019s Vocational Technical Institute.<\/p>\n

Dan Wheeler graduated from SIU in 1971 with a bachelor\u2019s degree in social studies, and Kathy Wheeler completed much of her master\u2019s program at SIU.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody in my family had ever gone to college before,\u201d said Dan Wheeler. \u201cI received a small teacher\u2019s scholarship and worked at the university post office. I had to work pretty hard, so I didn\u2019t take full class loads.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kathy Wheeler, a southern Illinois native, was an undergraduate at Murray State in Kentucky, but returned home during breaks and the summer. Through mutual friends, she and Dan were introduced. In June of 1967, they were married.<\/p>\n

\u201cI fell in love with Danny at Morris Library,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

When they decided to help future educators, their affinity for SIU made a scholarship the obvious choice.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see SIU as continuing to be very important for the southern Illinois area,\u201d Dan Wheeler said. \u201cWe wanted to think about something that will last beyond our lifetime. I have a blessed life and career because of SIU.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teachers & advocates<\/strong><\/p>\n

After a stint in the Army, Dan Wheeler began his teaching career at St. Mary\u2019s Catholic School in Herrin. He has also taught middle school in Christopher, Illinois, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Gwinnett County, Georgia.<\/p>\n

Kathy Wheeler taught English for a decade at her alma mater, Herrin High School. She has also worked with the National Education Association, National Society of Public Relations Association and as trainer and advocate for teacher\u2019s associations across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cPublic education and those who provide it are crucial to America and our way of life,\u201d Kathy Wheeler said. \u201cEverybody gets to come through the door. People we\u2019re supporting with this scholarship will do the best they can with whoever walks through that door. It\u2019s so valuable to who we are at heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Wheelers are acutely aware of the issues that teachers can face.<\/p>\n

\u201cTeaching is an undervalued profession,\u201d Dan Wheeler said. \u201cPeople that go into it, and stay in it, are very dedicated. For us to be able to promote the profession and help those who want to be a part of it, that\u2019s a special thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information on how to support student scholarships, visit foreversiu.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Engage with us on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jeff Wilson Dan and Kathy Wheeler\u2019s passion for Southern Illinois University may only be eclipsed by their passion for education. \u201cSIU is part of the family,\u201d said Kathy Wheeler. \u201cWe know it\u2019s the primary resource for students from southern Illinois to get a higher education and become teachers. That\u2019s where our hearts lie.\u201d The … Continue reading Couple of educators: Dan & Kathy Wheeler fund scholarship for future teachers<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,3,4,11,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-donor-stories","category-higher-education","category-illinois-higher-education","category-philanthropic-women","category-siu"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1731"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1731\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1733,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1731\/revisions\/1733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.siuf.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}