2005 Marvin Rammelsberg Award Winner

Presented to Carol Dettenwanger

Carol Dettenwanger has been an educator in southwest Ohio for more than thirty-five years, the last twenty-five as the freshman guidance counselor at Ursuline Academy for Hamilton County Educational Service Center. Carol’s extraordinary ability to make new students comfortable has won her acclaim among students, staff and parents alike. Freshmen know they can depend on Carol for everything from help with study skills to what people wear to the first school mixer. Students realize that Carol’s listening ear is available for everything ranging from the slightest problem to the most devastating crisis. They are comfortable speaking with Carol and confident in her care and concern about their lives. Graduates from all years keep in touch with Carol to update her on the twists and turns that life has put in their paths.

It’s not only students’ lives that Carol has touched, however. Ursuline’s faculty turns to Carol for dilemmas with students as well. Carol is a teachers’ teacher. She offers suggestions for dealing with various issues that affect students both in and out of the classroom. New teachers especially benefit from her hints and suggestions for reaching students with different kinds of learning styles. When Carol conducts a staffing for a student who receives special accommodations, every faculty member present leaves enriched with new ideas not just for that student, but to make the course content more understandable for all students. Carol was a wealth of information for me when I taught my first student with a hearing impairment. While being an advocate for her students, Carol also tries to make each teacher’s job easier and more enjoyable.

Professionalism is a quintessential element of Carol’s career. In everything from ethics to continuing education, Carol models what all counselors strive for. She is conscientious about legal and confidentiality issues. Most memorable for me is the fact that Carol was my mentor when I entered the counseling profession. Her outstanding work inspired me to earn my counseling degree. Carol provided me with a sounding board for questions and ideas, allowed me to do an internship with her freshman guidance groups and encouraged me to move into a counseling position at Ursuline and later at Mount Notre Dame for Hamilton County Educational Service Center. Despite the fact that we now work at different schools, Carol and I still consult each other on difficult cases and attend many professional development conferences together. I’m sure that my own technique, success and enjoyment in counseling are due, in a large part, to Carol’s influence.

Lest this sound like all work and no play, Carol is also a wonderful wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. Our friendship began in 1979 when we were both new at Ursuline; it continues stronger today. Carol has supported me through the tough times, cheered me through the exciting times and just “been there” in the everyday times. I cherish her presence in my life and can think of no one more deserving of the Marv Rammelsburg School Counselor Award.

-Nomination by colleague from Ursuline Academy