Fast Facts
Name: Joel RIck
Occupation: Elementary Music Teacher
Hometown: Culbertson, NE
Education: High School- Hitchcock County High School
Bachelors Degree- Hastings College
Favorite Color- Orange
Favorite hobbies- History, biking, and traveling
The first half-ish of my first year of teaching has been a blast! I have learned and grown in many ways thanks to the wonderful students and staff here at WRRSD. Being a first year teacher following up on a 40+ year veteran was a bit daunting at first, but things have gone well in no small part because of the great people I get to work with.
So a little bit about me......
As a Pastors Kid, my childhood involved moving around quite a bit. I was born on January 7, 1993 in Norfolk, Nebraska to two wonderful and loving parents. From Creston, to Beatrice, to Central City we moved around more than a few times during my early years.
Once at Central City, we stayed for a while, a whole 8 years. Most of my childhood was spent roaming the sidewalks, front lawns, and backyards with my younger brother and friends in our neighborhood around St. Paul's Lutheran Church. Central City was also where I got my start in school first with pre-school and kindergarten all the way up to 6th grade. It was during my 5th and 6th grade years at Central City that I first developed a love of music. I had three wonderful music teachers during that time who challenged and mentored me through those nebulous first years of Junior High School. In 6th grade I was selected to go to the Sing Around Nebraska Children's Choir at the National Association for Music Education Conference in 2004. That experience changed everything for me, and from that time on I knew I wanted to be a music teacher.
Fast forward one big move and a few years later, and this same passion for music led me to enroll at Hastings College in 2011, where I received a bachelors degree in Music Education K-12 in May of 2015.
As a new teacher I am excited to start my journey of teaching here at WRRSD! Coming from a small school I know the importance of pitching in and how much of an impact a strong school with a good music program can have in a community. I look forward to learning and growing here in Wood River, and to a great rest of the school year!