HUMBOLDT — Korenne Wolken remembers the time when it all clicked for one of her students.
It clicked for her, too.
That’s when she realized she wanted to become a special education teacher.
“I was teaching algebra at Altoona Midway and this kid came in. He was really struggling. I went over the problem 1,200 different ways. We sat there and worked until it finally clicked. I thought, that look of success is what I want to see,” she said.
“All kids have abilities, and our job is to empower our students to feel confident in their abilities. Special education is how we can really customize it for each kid.”
Wolken, who got her start in education as a math teacher, has worked in special education for the ANW Cooperative since 2010.
The cooperative provides services for students with special education needs. Services can range from one-on-one time to help students develop a particular skill, to speech, hearing and physical therapies. The co-op serves eight districts in Southeast Kansas, with headquarters in Humboldt.
Last week, Wolken was hired to serve as the organization’s new director, starting in July.
She’ll be leading the cooperative in the midst of a pandemic, and at a time when the Chanute school district publicly debated leaving the group.
CHANUTE recently backed away from leaving the co-op. According to a report in The Chanute Tribune, it would cost the district nearly $500,000 to convert current special ed employees to its own staff.
According to the newspaper, board members criticized the ANW leadership. ANW interim-director Sheila Coronado described a contentious meeting in May 2021, which she said likely played a role in former director Doug Tressler’s resignation.
Wolken hadn’t worked with the Chanute district until this school year, when she took over as coordinator for the Chanute Elementary School.
So far, she’s had a positive experience with Chanute. One of her first actions after accepting the new role was to reach out to administrators and discuss how to rebuild the relationship.
She said she hopes the district’s leadership gives her a chance.
“I look at this as an opportunity,” Wolken said.
“I want to go into this with a clean slate. How do we make this work?”
WOLKEN grew up between Humboldt and Moran, and graduated from Marmaton Valley.
