Nathan P Swink

The Public Learning Place Nathan P Swink

Edna Nadean wasn't thinking about her childhood when she took the job as director of the new alternative school in a rural Kansas town. A teaching certificate and Masters of Education opened the door to the opportunity. It was her upbringing that told her how to see it through. Growing up Edna learned much about what not-to-do from her mother. Edna worked to "break family scripts" and redefine the meaning of "Mother" in her family in a new less-dysfunctional image. Thanks to this effort Edna Nadean not only improved her own family, but influenced many more students and their families. During her tenure in charge of the Public Learning Place Edna often felt she was providing the only parenting some students received. Edna's story reminds us of the power of motherhood, not just to a family, but to a community.