After school one day this past January, Joan Hall, a special education aide at Myhre Elementary School in Bismarck, received a call from a number that wasn’t in her list of contacts.
“I was getting ready to leave, and I think Lori (Furaus) called me, and I didn't know who she was,” Hall said. When Furaus introduced herself as a field consultant for North Dakota United, Hall said she didn’t know what to expect.
“When she started talking, I'm thinking, they're going to want me to, like, come to a meeting or do something,” Hall said, with a laugh. “And I was like, ‘OK, I'll listen and see what happens.’”
The purpose of that phone call was to let Hall know that she had been nominated by her peers for the 2025-26 ND United Education Support Professional (ESP) of the Year award and was selected as one of three finalists.
Hall’s initial reaction was skepticism, she admits, because none of her colleagues had mentioned to her that they had nominated her. “(Lori) started talking about this nomination, and I seriously thought it was a scam,” she said. “I didn't know if it was real, at first. And so, I just kind of waited and waited, and then I didn't hear anything. So, I thought, yeah, I don't know what that was. … Then, one day I got a call again, and I'm, like, wait! This IS real!”
Imagine then her surprise as the process to select this year’s ESP of the Year kept getting more and more real. Starting with a finalist ceremony at her school in February, which was attended by Bismarck Superintendent Jeff Fastnacht, members of the Bismarck School Board, NDU President Nick Archuleta and more.
You can read more about Hall’s ceremony by clicking here.
“I would have been satisfied with the ceremony at my school for just being nominated. I was just glad to be nominated. I mean, it felt like a win right there. And, you know, all the, important people that came. I did not expect that at all.”
Hall’s fellow finalists for this year’s awards were Brenda Muller, elementary secretary for Hillsboro Public Schools, and Laurie Holcomb, a special education paraeducator at South Middle School in Grand Forks. They also received individual recognition ceremonies at their schools during February and March.
“I think it's awesome that you guys do a celebration for all the nominees,” Hall said. “I mean, to me, like I said, that would have been enough. … The fourth graders all made cards for me and congratulated me. They were so cute, and even little first graders, you know, would say, ‘I hope you win the award, Miss June.’ … It was great, I loved it.”
After each finalist ceremony was held, the NDU ESP Advisory Committee met to discuss each nominee’s qualifications. And a winner was announced, first at our ESP Conference in Bismarck on April 5 and then again at Delegate Assembly on April 12. This year’s NDU ESP of the Year was Joan Hall.
Hall started off her speech at Delegate Assembly by thanking the two NDU members who had nominated her: Harlan Stewart, a paraeducator at Myhre, and Emma Schatz, a special education teacher at the school.
“Harlan’s) my colleague and really, … we're a family now,” she said. “I've been taking care of his little boy since kindergarten. … And then, Emma Schatz, a special ed teacher that I just started working with this year, and I was just so surprised that she nominated me for this. You know, we just met and just started working together.”
She then reflected on her journey, starting with growing up in Bismarck and leading to working at Myhre for the past 25 years. “I grew up in a middle-class family. I was sent to Catholic school, (a) private school, and in our school, I just saw secretary, principal, teachers, and some nuns and priests. … There was no inclusion, and so I was not familiar.
“Fast forward, I'm married (and) I have my own family,” she continued. “We moved back to Bismarck, and I had been a stay-at-home mom. Both of my kids were in school, so I wanted to find a job ideally with school hours. If I could find a job in a school, I was really kind of a secretary, so that was my idea. But I had a friend who said there's an opening at our school for a special ed aide, and (helping) this little boy in a wheelchair. And I said, ‘Oh, I don't know anything about special needs children; I've never dealt with them.’ She said, ‘Just come and meet him. He's so cute, you know, just come and meet him and see what you think. And so, I went and met him, and he was so sweet, and he won my heart. And I said, ‘OK, I'll give it a try.’”
Stewart read from his nomination letter at Hall’s finalist ceremony while standing by his son, Ted. “From a parent's perspective, Joan has become an important part of our family,” he said. “She began working with my child in kindergarten and has shown unwavering love and support every step of the way. My child, who has Down’s Syndrome, can be stubborn, mischievous and defiant at times. Joan meets these challenges with respect and kindness because she sees beyond the behaviors to the sweet, caring child who simply wants to please.”
As much as winning ESP of the Year has meant to Hall, the biggest wins of her career come from the small moments of standing alongside a special-needs child and watching them succeed at a task they have struggled with accomplishing.
“If you're working on sight words with a student for weeks,” Hall said, as an example, “and maybe you have a stack of 10, 15 words, and you go over them and they remember, let's say, after a week like five out of the 15, and then you're so happy they remembered some. And then you just keep working. And then, one day, they just know them all. And it's such a win and you’re just so proud that they love the celebration of their success. And yeah, I do, too. I love it, too.”
