New N-P teacher has a head start

Many were stunned when they found out last May when Julie DeBower announced her retirement and would be done at the end of the school year.Now there is a new school year upon us and a new, but in many ways a familiar face, at the Nashua-Plainfield High School.Deedie Cerwinske is the new Family and Consumer Sciences teacher, FCCLA advisor and happy to be back in her hometown teaching.Cerwinske graduated from Nashua High School and went on to Iowa State University.After receiving her teaching degree she began her teaching career at Howard-Winneshiek Schools for five years. During her time there her and Darin, her husband, had two children.  Cerwinske decided she wanted to stay at home with the children and moved back to Nashua and opened an in home daycare.In the fall of 2004 the Cerwinske family moved to Georgia so Darin could attend school after years of being in the construction field.He received his degree and the family moved back to the area so he could start the Cedar Point Church in Nashua.  She said it was a great opportunity to come back to the area and give back to the community where they both grew up.After various positions, having two more children and subbing Cerwinske began teaching at the Charles City Middle School for the last couple years until she found the opportunity to teach at Nashua-Plainfield High School.This is an exciting change for their four children since the younger two children can walk from the elementary school during the school year and the older two will be in the same building as her.“It’s a different kind of connection when you are teaching classmates children,” said Cerwinske but she is excited to be teaching and raising her family in the same community where she grew up in.“I really do like teaching students life skills which they will use now and in their future,” said Cerwinske. She loves teaching and being part of the NP community and she knows that she has big shoes to fill but ready for the challenge.