Milwaukee Film is proud to present the 11 educators selected for the 2020-21 Melinda Krei Educator Fellowship, an annual program that supports educators with resources to encourage the use of film and digital media in the classroom.

Structured like a seminar, the free program includes a session prior to the Milwaukee Film Festival, a list of Festival films to watch, a packet of readings, three post-Festival discussion sessions, and a capstone presentation. Fellows are required to create and share a teaching object as their capstone activity. The hands-on experience takes approximately 30-40 hours to complete.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP ≫

KAREN AMBROSH
Greenfield School District, Greenfield

GRADE LEVEL: K-12 District Instructional Media & Technology Specialist

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 25

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: I want to build mini-film festivals around global issues as programming for our middle and high school Learning Commons to grow our Global Education Achievement Certificate Program.

FAVORITE FILM: I taught film for many years and have so many favorites, it is almost impossible to choose! I love classics from directors like Frank Capra, Alfred Hitchcock, and Martin Scorsese. I love being able to take a film like Close Encounters of the Third Kind by Steven Spielberg and help students see the social impact a film can have in shaping our perspectives on religion, government control, and xenophobia. I love sharing with them the power of film.

ANNIE CERNIGLIA
Milwaukee High School of the Arts, Milwaukee

GRADE LEVEL: All grades

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 3

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: I work with some really awesome individuals, all of whom receive special education services. In this fellowship, I hope to bring life to complex and abstract ideas that are sometimes hard to access, so that that our small group lesson conversations can grow richer and deeper.  

FAVORITE FILM: Frances Ha

DIANNE CHOIE
Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee

GRADE LEVEL: Early childhood (0-5) and students ages 6-15

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 4

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: I want to bring film watching/filmmaking to our youth programs at MAM!

FAVORITE FILM: Spellbound, Spirited Away

PAUL DWORSCHACK-KINTER
Milwaukee High School of the Arts, Milwaukee

GRADE LEVEL: 9-12

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 15 years teaching college, 2 teaching K12

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: Learn how to better bring film into the K12 classroom in a meaningful way, especially for my Creative Writing Major students!

FAVORITE FILM: The Matrix

JOHANNA FRENCH
Lake Bluff Elementary School, Shorewood

GRADE LEVEL: 1-2

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 12

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: I hope to learn how to incorporate film into our language arts curriculum. I believe film could be used to develop students' comprehension skills as well as a love for storytelling.

FAVORITE FILM: The Lives of Others

RENEE GLEMBIN
Shorewood High School and New Horizons Charter School, Shorewood

GRADE LEVEL: 9 - 12 (primarily 11-12 graders)

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: This will be my 10th year at Shorewood and my 13th as a teacher

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: My goal is to continue to grow in my ability to have informed discussions with students about film and to help students come to view film as so much more than just passive entertainment.

FAVORITE FILM: "Favorite" film!!?? Agghhh, you're killing me here! There are too many! But, it is the season, and I do, love, love Psycho. It never gets old. I have watched it many times and in fact, we have rented out a theater to watch it as a family on Friday, Oct. 30!! 

AMY MILLER
Lake Bluff Elementary School, Shorewood

GRADE LEVEL: 5-6

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 13

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: To integrate the art and craft of film into my curriculum so I can grow my students' perceptions, reflect their identities, and expand their love and appreciation of others.

FAVORITE FILM: Run Lola Run

KATHLEEN SNIDER
Lake Bluff Elementary School, Shorewood

GRADE LEVEL: 5-6 multiage

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 3

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: Through this fellowship, I aspire to find creative ways to engage my students in storytelling and the writing process.

FAVORITE FILM: Lady Bird

TANNER TEIPEL
Whitefish Bay High School, Whitefish Bay

GRADE LEVEL: 9-12

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 15

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: To be a better film and animation teacher!

FAVORITE FILM: Cool Hand Luke

NICHOLAS WAYNE
South Milwaukee High School, South Milwaukee

GRADE LEVEL: 9-12

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 4

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: Meet with other educators that share a love of film, develop strategies for implementing film in classrooms, and learn methods for facilitating conversations with diverse student groups.

FAVORITE FILM: Drive

MICHELLE YOUNG
Golda Meir Middle School, Milwaukee

GRADE LEVEL: 6-8

YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE: 20

TOP GOAL OR ASPIRATION FOR YOUR FELLOWSHIP: Use film to analyze and comprehend historical, social or scientific film.

FAVORITE FILM: The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete