Fort Peck Community College’s new Vice President Robyn Renz-Baker spent her life in education.
The veteran teacher/administrator worked through her busy schedule in the public school system to earn a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership and being certified as an Education Specialist.
Working as a full time educator and parent to children, Baker managed to juggle home and teaching. But there were struggles sometimes that made it harder to work in the tri-state region of Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
“I was in a field dominated by Caucasian males.,” she said. “Educated Indigenous women have to work harder and smarter to prove that we are at or above the bar set by society.”
Born and raised in Poplar, Baker said she was inspired to go into teaching and made it her goal to become a teacher. She graduated from Poplar High School before going on to study education at Montana State University – Northern. This would turn to her earning a bachelors degree in Elementary Education from Montana State University in Bozeman.
Her first teaching job was with Fort Belknap’s Head Start program for three years. Baker was hired at Poplar Public Schools where she would spend the next 20 years in teaching. Her first class were second graders, and she later was put in charge of sixth graders.
Baker was also working her way up the administrative ladder. Baker would go from teacher to the Assistant Principal in Poplar Middle School.
Things kept taking off for Baker.
She would work as Principal for two years at McLaughlin Public School in South Dakota. Here she would peruse her Education Specialist degree.
After getting her degree, Baker became Superintendent for Fort Yates Public Schools. The next 10 years were spent in Fort Yates, before finding the FPCC Vice President job.
One of Baker’s goals is to alight with FPCC’s goals and strategic plan as well as providing support to the president, instructional staff, and students.
“We are excited to have Robyn join our Administrative Team,” President Haven Gourneau said. “we have experienced major changes in the last few years with incorporating online education, dual credit, course sharing, and cultural initiatives, her leadership experience will certainly be welcome.”
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