Teachers are the cornerstone of educational systems worldwide, playing a pivotal role in shaping the intellectual and moral fabric of society. Their influence extends beyond the mere transmission of knowledge; they inspire, mentor, and mold students into responsible, compassionate individuals. In the context of Seventh-day Adventist education, teachers hold a unique position in guiding students toward a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ while fostering academic excellence.  Research consistently demonstrates that teacher quality is the most significant school-related factor influencing student achievement.1 Effective teachers possess not only a deep understanding of the subject matter but also the pedagogical skills to engage students actively. They create learning environments that promote critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving.  A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that students assigned to high-performing teachers are more likely to attend college, earn higher salaries, and save more for retirement.2 This finding highlights the importance of cultivating effective teachers and underscores the long-term impact teachers have on students’ academic trajectories and life outcomes.  Teachers influence not just academic success but also students’ social and emotional development. Positive teacher-student relationships contribute to better classroom behavior, higher self-esteem, and increased motivation.3 Moreover, teachers serve as role models, imparting values such as integrity, perseverance, and empathy.  In Adventist education, this influence is magnified as teachers integrate faith with learning. By incorporating biblical principles into the curriculum, teachers help students develop a moral compass grounded in Christian values.4 This holistic approach nurtures not only intellectual growth but also spiritual maturity and character development.  Seventh-day Adventist education emphasizes the harmonious development of the physical, mental, and spiritual faculties.5 Teachers in Adventist schools are entrusted with the mission of guiding students toward a personal relationship with Christ while preparing them for service in this world and the next.  A study conducted by the North American Division Office of Education (CognitiveGenesis) revealed that students in Adventist schools outperform their peers in both standardized testing and character development measures.6 This success is attributed to dedicated teachers who embody the Adventist philosophy of education, fostering environments where faith and learning are seamlessly integrated.  Despite their critical role, Adventist educators often face challenges such as limited resources, large class sizes, and evolving educational demands. Continuous professional development is essential to equip teachers with the latest pedagogical strategies, technological tools, and understanding of how to support social-emotional needs.7  In Adventist education, there is an ongoing need to support teachers through spiritual and professional growth opportunities. Initiatives such as the Adventist Learning Community provide resources for teachers to enhance their skills and deepen their faith.8 However, greater, ongoing support is needed to ensure the development of high-performing Adventist teachers.  Investing in teachers is investing in the future of the worldwide church. By supporting and empowering educators, we ensure that they can continue to inspire and mentor students, fulfilling the mission of Adventist education to prepare young people for a life of service to God and humanity.  Diane Harris is director of education for the Rocky Mountain Conference in Denver, Colorado. 1 Darling-Hammond, L. (2000). Teacher quality and student achievement: A review of state policy evidence. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 8(1). 2 Chetty, R., Friedman, J. N., & Rockoff, J. E. (2014). Measuring the impacts of teachers II: Teacher value-added and student outcomes in adulthood. American Economic Review, 104(9), 2633-2679. 3 Roorda, D. L., Koomen, H. M., Spilt, J. L., & Oort, F. J. (2011). The influence of affective teacher–student relationships on students’ school engagement and achievement: A meta-analytic approach. Review of Educational Research, 81(4), 493-529.  4 White, E. G. (1903). Education. Pacific Press Publishing Association.  5 General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Department of Education. (2003). Seventh-day Adventist Philosophy of Education. General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.  6 Thayer, J. D. (2014). CognitiveGenesis: Assessing Academic Achievement in Adventist Schools. Journal of Research on Christian Education, 23(1), 28-36. 7 Guskey, T. R. (2002). Professional development and teacher change. Teachers and Teaching, 8(3), 381-391.  8 Adventist Learning Community. (n.d.). Professional Development Resources. Retrieved from https://www.adventistlearningcommunity.com 

In October 2023, I had the pleasure of presenting a paper at the North American Division’s Women in Adventist History Conference. My paper, “The Invisible Seventh-day Adventist Medical Cadet Corps: Women in a Man’s World,” briefly explored the lives of four women who at one time or another were involved in the Medical Cadet Corps between 1938 and 1958. Limited to only twenty minutes in which to speak, my research retrieved far more material than I had time to share then. Thus, it is my privilege in this article, and in others in this series, to more fully explore the lives and contributions of these four women in addition to two more women who should have been included in the original presentation. The other stories in this series include: Part 1: Verna Lucille Robson Part 2: Kathryn Luella Jenson Nelson Part 3: Josephine Rose Steinkraus Stone  Part 4: Marion G. Seitz Simmons Part 5: Arlene Naomi Church Seitz When Everett Dick became director of Medical Cadet Corps (MCC) training for the General Conference in 1941, he worked out of his home. By default, his wife, Opal Wheeler Dick, became his office assistant, a position she held until he retired from the MCC in 1958. Born on April 28, 1901, in Ottawa, Kansas, Opal Elree Wheeler, was the daughter of John and Esther Wheeler, farmers with roots in Iowa. She trained as a teacher at Ottawa High School. Despite being denied a teaching certificate because she refused to test on Sabbath, the Kansas Conference still hired her to teach church school. She attended the Ottawa Business College and then enrolled in Union College’s commerce course from which she graduated in 1923. She married Everett on August 15 that same year. Her education allowed her to alternately teach church school and work as a secretary as she followed her husband from Missouri to Iowa, and then Wisconsin. When they returned to Union College, she taught in the commerce department until their three children were born. Thus, when Everett accepted leadership of the denomination-wide MCC, Opal was available to assist him. In 1951, the Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan conferences in Canada, invited Everett Dick to lead an MCC training camp. At Camp Almansask (a moniker created from an amalgamation of the three provinces’ names) in 1951, Opal’s assistance earned her the honorary title of “lieutenant colonel.” Tucked in nearly at the end of an article about this camp is this sentence: “Mrs. E. N. Dick did the secretarial work of the camp, and her gracious ways won her the esteem and respect of all.” Her own husband called her the XO or executive officer, the military term for the junior officer who serves a senior officer as office manager. From 1951 to 1958, the Dicks managed an international organization from their home in the College View community of Lincoln. Everett was on the road frequently, sometimes traveling internationally for months at a time. During those periods, Opal managed all correspondence and orders for MCC materials, making decisions on her husband’s behalf. How much, if anything, she was paid for this work is yet to be determined. If Everett Dick had been willing to move to Takoma Park, Maryland, and work out of the General Conference office building, he may have availed himself of the services of a paid secretary. However, he served as director of the Medical Cadet Corps only as long as he was allowed to work from his home in Lincoln, Nebraska. Thus, his wife, Opal Wheeler Dick became secretary, albeit one who, perhaps, was not always paid. There is record of her being paid an hourly rate for her work at Camp Doss in the summer of 1953. But that is not the only year she worked at Camp Doss as is evident from this photo of Everett and Opal Dick posing with eighteen cadets from the Central Union at Camp Doss, held June 29 to July 13, 1954. After Everett Dick’s resignation from the Medical Cadet Corps, he returned to full-time teaching at Union College. Opal joined the  the Central Union Conference, where she served as secretary of the education department until 1966. However, Opal’s talents extended into other areas. She not only assisted her husband with his book manuscripts, but she was the author of books for children and many magazine articles in church papers as well. She also wrote scripts and directed pageants for local church and conference programs, and was an active member of the College View Seventh-day Adventist Church. Because Everett Dick was a historian and well aware of the lasting significance of the MCC, he kept his papers, including hundreds of letters and photographs. Among them are letters written by Opal. She also appears in many MCC photographs. Thus, of all the women involved in the MCC, she is the one woman whose contribution to the MCC is best documented.

OUTLOOK editor Brenda Dickerson recently sat down with Nancy Buxton, long-time director of women’s ministries for the Mid-America Union, to learn more about this unique ministry. Brenda Dickerson: I understand that women’s ministries for the North American Division actually started right here in Mid-America. Please tell us about its beginnings. Nancy Buxton: In 1983 the NAD asked all the unions to have a representative for women. Evelyn Glass was Mid-America’s and she organized a meeting at College View Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. A lot of women came and they just talked about things they wished would be different in our church. Elder George Timpson from Mid-America Union was there and he went back to Elder Joel Tompkins, who was our union president at the time, and told him that we needed to do something for women. Before long, the NAD called those representatives back together, and that’s how women’s ministries started.  Very interesting. Nancy, how would you define women’s ministries now?  Women’s ministries is designed to give women confidence, and to also help women have a better relationship—or begin a relationship—with Jesus. But it’s more than that. Friendship is so important to women. Some time ago, there was a study done in Minnesota called the Nurses Study. And it showed how important women’s friendships really are. Our friendships make a difference in both our mental health and our physical health. I’ve always thought if you can help a woman, you make a difference in a family, in a church, and in a community.  What has kept you involved with women’s ministries for so long?  Yes, 21 years is a long time, but you know what? It seems like yesterday that I began. When I go to a retreat or a training I see the difference it makes in women’s lives. One time I was in Minnesota and I watched two older women who, when they saw each other, were so delighted. They gave each other a big bear hug and they held each other for a length of time. It just thrills my heart to watch how women’s ministries brings women together.  Can you share a specific story about a woman whose life was impacted by women’s ministries? Brenda, I could tell many stories. But I think especially of one person. She felt so unequipped to do anything. And when she was asked to work in the children’s division–now we’re talking two and three year olds—she was so nervous she could feel the hem of her dress hitting her leg as she stood up there because she was shaking so much. She got involved in women’s ministries and I watched her blossom.  She turned into a dynamic leader, and it was really all thanks to women’s ministries. I heard her tell her story, and she has such a story to tell! It made a difference to the women when she told it, and it made a big difference to her.  That’s really beautiful. In your opinion, Nancy, what is your greatest accomplishment in women’s ministries?  I truly do not feel that I have done any great accomplishment. But we together, as women’s ministries people, have done a lot. I feel like my job has been to be the cheerleader for my team, the cheerleader for other women. When I think about women’s ministries I look at the “end it now” initiative and the importance of just bringing that forward so people realize love should not hurt.  And abuse—physical abuse, spiritual abuse, sexual abuse—needs to end now. In addition, I think about all the wonderful resources we have developed. We have great resources. And I think all of those are huge accomplishments.   Watch the full video interview with Nancy Buxton at youtube.com/MidAmericaOutlook For women’s ministries resources visit www.nadwm.org

“To be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars; to be satisfied with your possessions, but not contented with yourself until you have made the best of them; to despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness, and to fear nothing except cowardice; to be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts; to covet nothing that is your neighbor’s except his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners; to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends, and every day of Christ; and to spend as much time as you can, with body and with spirit, in God’s out-of-doors—these are little guideposts on the footpath to peace.” While Henry Van Dyke, Presbyterian minister and American writer, wrote these words in the early twentieth century, they resonate with three Rocky Mountain Conference schools on the Colorado Western Slope. The sunbaked landscape may be rugged, but the serene spirit of the land seems to inspire these schools. Our schools in Grand Junction and Cortez, Colorado, and Farmington, New Mexico, embody resilience, strength and an aura of peace. Intermountain Adventist Academy in Grand Junction, Colorado, with 35 students and under the leadership of Jeff Jackson, thrives on community and collaboration. The staff often works across grade levels, blending the strengths of each teacher to create a rich, supportive learning environment.  At a recent Town Hall meeting, IAA teacher Andrea Jackson was inspired by the renovation project at Glacier View Ranch in Ward, Colorado, particularly its commitment to inclusivity. She guided her high school math students in developing plans to improve accessibility, encouraging them to apply math skills in ways that mirror Van Dyke’s ideals of service and thoughtful improvement. Students learn to take ownership of their learning, not just for personal achievement but as a way to serve others. Cortez Adventist Christian School, with 24 students, is a vibrant, close-knit community led by Deedee Franklin and Teresa Quillan, who have fostered a systematic, holistic approach to learning over many years. Embracing Van Dyke’s idea of striving to improve, Deedee and Teresa are dedicated to giving students a strong academic and spiritual foundation. The Unlocking the Code reading program has become central to this goal. Here, students are taught to approach their studies with reverence and diligence, finding joy and satisfaction in learning each new word, fact or idea. RMC’s smallest school on the Western Slope is Discover Christian School in Farmington, New Mexico, where Jean Rose Manuop has recently joined as the teacher for the one-room school. Mrs. Manuop, newly arrived from the Philippines, brings a fresh perspective, eagerly learning from and contributing to the Farmington community.  During a visit from the RMC Office of Education, the school was engrossed in worship with Messiah’s Mansion, traveling through a sanctuary replica. Each day’s worship centered on new truths about Christ’s mission, reflecting Van Dyke’s encouragement to seek peace and purpose through faith. In the simplicity of the one-room setting, students at Discover Christian School are finding the profound joy of God’s presence and the beauty of a life dedicated to learning and spiritual growth. “Our visit to each of these schools,” reflected RMC education superintendent Diane Harris, “reveals educators that exemplify kindness, gentleness and Christlike leadership. Each one demonstrates a commitment to providing guideposts that will help their students become who God has created them to be.”