Drever picked as top Owat. teacher

Liza Drever, math teacher at Owatonna High School, has been chosen as the district’s top educator.

Owatonna Education Association named Drever as Teacher of the Year at its annual banquet May 6. Other finalists were William Blechschmidt, Amanda Flohrs and Liz Charlton.

Drever grew up in DeSmet, S.D. She earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics education from Southwest Minnesota State University and later completed a master’s degree in educational leadership through the university. In addition, she took graduate level math courses through Minnesota State University Moorhead to obtain certification to teach College Now courses.

She began her teaching career at Lakeview Public Schools, where she taught seventh grade math during the 2001-2002 school year. From 2002-2018, she taught at Faribault High School. She began teaching at Owatonna High School during the 2018-2019 school year. She will teach intermediate algebra, geometry, college algebra, and AP precalculus next school year.

“My favorite part of teaching is the relationships with colleagues and students. My colleagues remind me that not every day has to be your best, but you should always give your best, and give yourself grace,” said Drever. “They show me that being silly builds connection, that it is brave to try new strategies in the classroom, and that support is always close by. My students teach me about resilience, perspective, and the power of embracing differences. Those daily interactions are what makes the teaching profession meaningful.”

She added, “It is an honor to receive this recognition. In teaching, we learn and grow from our interactions with each other. I believe that every teacher in Owatonna deserves to be recognized and celebrated for their hard work and dedication to students.”

OEA has more than 380 members who nominate and vote annually for the Teacher of the Year.