Freel moves on to retirement

The Hot Springs County School District is losing an educator this year who has spent 34 years with the district, teaching everything from first grade to online courses at the high school, Ronda Freel.

Freel started out at the Hamilton Dome school teaching third and fourth grade from 1984 to 1991. She worked her way up to being lead teacher at the Dome until classes had shrunk so much they were down to a single classroom.

“It was awesome out there,” Freel said. “We were our own little community. Everyone came to all the programs and things. It was great, too, that my para and I could travel together every day, talking about the plans for the day on the way in in the morning and then discussing how everything went on the way home.”

She was brought into town in the fall of 1991, spending the next 10 years teaching first grade at Ralph Witters Elementary. This year’s sophomore class at the high school were her first students in town.

In 2001, Freel was back on the road again, this time as the technology teacher for kindergarten through sixth grade in town in the mornings and then traveling out to Lucerne to teach technology there in the afternoons.

Freel began teaching at the high school in 2013, taking care of the alternative classroom in the vocational building before it was moved to the main high school building in 2014.

Her last years at the high school were spent not only with the alternative classroom, but was doing credit recovery and helping students with online classes as well.

“That was a great room,” she said. “There was no stigma to it. It was open to whoever needed it.

“I love those high school kids. I never knew from one period to the next who I might have in my room. It was fabulous. I had them early and then reconnecting with them in high school was phenomenal.

“I do worry about the children’s relationships now. Those relationships with their peers and their families is so much more important than where they’re ranked on any test.”

So what is her plan now that she’s retired?

Freel just became a grandma, so her first priority is going to be taking care of the new bundle of joy for the first year.

She does intend to continue to help at school events like running the clock at games so she can stay connected with the kids.

Travel, too, is high on her list of things to do now that she’s retired.