"I strive to inspire young minds to search for new methods," says Mary Deliece (Mullen) Hofen, a fourth-grade teacher in the two-year classroom format instituted at O'Loughlin Elementary School in Hays. Ms. (Mullen) Hofen, who has recently received National Board Certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, serves as an educational consultant for a variety of inservice and professional development programs. As an educational leader in her district, she has developed curricular standards in social studies, language arts and mathematics. Ms. (Mullen) Hofen is co-developer of the Extended Year Summer School Program that is currently instituted at her school and in her district. She also helped create a partnership between her school and a local university to develop a four-year field-based program for student teachers. In 1995, the National Science Teaching Association recognized Ms. (Mullen) Hofen with a Presidential Award for Excellence in Elementary Math Teaching.
