january teacher of the month: Mrs. rush

In the classroom she’s teaching Social Studies, but outside you can find her hunting, fishing, and just being with her family. Mrs. Rush is January’s teacher of the month and has been a long-time Bulldog for over 28 years, working at Palisade since 1995. “I just love the people and community,” she says, “We’ve always had great administration, good people, and a fun staff.” She played college basketball at Mesa and earned a Bachelor’s in English. Over the summers, she would volunteer for Parks and Wildlife to help prevent forest fires. It was over one of these summers she met Brian Rush who also went to Mesa for wrestling. He originally wanted to be a firefighter, but later found his passion in teaching, something he and Mrs. Rush had in common. They later got married and have been teaching together at Palisade High School ever since. Mrs. Rush student taught at Palisade before deciding this was the school for her. Over the course of her career, she has earned a secondary teaching license and a Master’s in teaching reading. Mrs. Rush started out teaching English for 14 years, but eventually changed to social studies and wishes she would’ve done it sooner. Being raised on a farm, Mrs. Rush knows how to work hard. She recommends the book The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien because it taught her when she was younger how to carry items while volunteering with the forest fires, and it also shares important history about the Vietnam Year. It was her family that inspired her to teach. Without them, she wouldn’t be here today. She has some words of wisdom she wishes to share: “Work hard, it sets the tone for where you’ll be and what you’ll accomplish. It can open up so many doors.” Congratulations Mrs. Rush on being January’s teacher of the month! You deserve it!