May 15, 2026
Dee Dee Ganski has been a part of Maercker D60 for 31 years and will be retiring this year! She is an instructional assistant at Maercker Intermediate School and started as a substitute at Holmes School when her children were young.
What is a favorite memory or moment of your time in D60?
Of all the memories I have I think my favorite was a unique experience. When Linda Taylor was principal, the State of Illinois promoted an afterschool enrichment program. Linda talked me into developing a class and I am so glad she did. The requirements were simple, it needed to be FUN and educational. I was approved for a class centered on our 50th state and was fortunate enough to have firsthand experience due to my time in Hawaii and had acquired various materials and visuals such as shells, coral, dishes, clothing, etc.
We studied various topics such as geography, culture, food, music, history, and wildlife each week.
I taught many of these students every day, but this was an opportunity to do something very different where we could see each other in a whole new way. Our course culminated in a Hawaiian luau, incorporating many of the things we studied over the past weeks. I received many thank you notes from students and parents and was so happy to open the world of Hawaii to our students.
Oddly enough, on the same day your email with questions came, I received a letter from the State University Retirement system telling me they had forty-five dollars of retirement savings based on a small payment for this class and wanted me to sign a form so they could send it! Talk about synchronicity! Of the many memories I have at Maercker, this one is a favorite!
How did you make an impact for students during your time in the district?
I hope I made an impact on the students, especially in the world of reading. Though I have worked in special education and math interventions, most of my years here were centered on intervention classes focused on reading skills. I love reading and always hoped to open that world to our students since it can then open the whole world to them. Raising two children, and watching the increasingly competitive nature of employment, I wanted to do everything I could to give them the skills necessary to become lifelong readers and successful in whatever career they dreamed of. I can only hope I made some small impact on the students that it was my privilege to teach every day!
What is a favorite memory or moment of your time in D60?
Of all the memories I have I think my favorite was a unique experience. When Linda Taylor was principal, the State of Illinois promoted an afterschool enrichment program. Linda talked me into developing a class and I am so glad she did. The requirements were simple, it needed to be FUN and educational. I was approved for a class centered on our 50th state and was fortunate enough to have firsthand experience due to my time in Hawaii and had acquired various materials and visuals such as shells, coral, dishes, clothing, etc.
We studied various topics such as geography, culture, food, music, history, and wildlife each week.
I taught many of these students every day, but this was an opportunity to do something very different where we could see each other in a whole new way. Our course culminated in a Hawaiian luau, incorporating many of the things we studied over the past weeks. I received many thank you notes from students and parents and was so happy to open the world of Hawaii to our students.
Oddly enough, on the same day your email with questions came, I received a letter from the State University Retirement system telling me they had forty-five dollars of retirement savings based on a small payment for this class and wanted me to sign a form so they could send it! Talk about synchronicity! Of the many memories I have at Maercker, this one is a favorite!
How did you make an impact for students during your time in the district?
I hope I made an impact on the students, especially in the world of reading. Though I have worked in special education and math interventions, most of my years here were centered on intervention classes focused on reading skills. I love reading and always hoped to open that world to our students since it can then open the whole world to them. Raising two children, and watching the increasingly competitive nature of employment, I wanted to do everything I could to give them the skills necessary to become lifelong readers and successful in whatever career they dreamed of. I can only hope I made some small impact on the students that it was my privilege to teach every day!