McKay retires after 44 years teaching

By TRISTAN JENSEN

Staff Writer

Sue McKay, who has taught for 44 years, is retiring. McKay spent 36 of her years teaching in Waseca Public Schools after getting her start at St. Joseph's Catholic School in Waconia and other schools in western Minnesota. She has taught every grade, kindergarten through eighth grade, at least once except for first grade. “I started babysitting when I was probably in fifth grade and just loved kids. I knew that that was going to be my profession.”

McKay earned her bachelor's degree with licenses in developmental and remedial reading from St. Cloud State University, and her Master's degree from Mankato State University. Post-retirement, she says “I hopefully will travel, but because I've been in education for 44 years I have to do a gradual release so I will probably be subbing a couple days a week.” In regards to traveling, she hopes to visit parts of her family that are “all over.” She also thinks she may do volunteer work. McKay's advice to new professionals is that it is okay to fail. She also advises young people to pay attention to who they spend their time with, and ensure they're the type of person who will help them better themselves. “You can get really bogged down, hanging with the wrong people,” she explained.

McKay's parents are Ruth and Arch, both deceased: She has seven brothers and two sisters. She was raised in Detroit, MI. McKay has not made a family of her own, but has the love of many nieces and nephews. “And all of my students have been my children,” she added.

About her early career, McKay recalled, “I was having a horrible, terrible day, and my voice was louder and my colleague next door to my classroom came over to me and said, Ms. McKay, do you need to take a break? Go take a walk.' And that was a defining moment to me, to really be careful of how I am in the classroom, and take a look at myself and redirect myself sometimes instead of redirecting the kids. In the moment you're embarrassed, but after you reflect on that it really was a defining moment of how I proceeded in the future.” The best advice she says she's ever received is to build the relationship with the students and classroom, because once you do that the rest becomes easier.

Everyone who knows McKay knows that she loves the Twins. Becky Ferch, fellow teacher, called her “a dyed-in-the-wool Twins fan.” Watching the Twins play is McKay's number one hobby. She also loves to stay active, exercising and walking, and says of her retirement, “now I will have time to read.”

To her students, current and former, and the public, McKay would like to say, “Hopefully you love what you do, and you're doing it for the right reasons.” She added. “And never stop learning; don't think you've learned it all, because you haven't.”