Math and More: The Multifaceted Role of a Small-Town Educator

How did you use math today? For some, that’s easy:

“In about ten minutes, I get to go do calculus,” said Cambry Ankenbauer, a senior at Bowbells High School.

There’s also those who are on the other side of that equation.

For Cyle Golde, the math teacher at Bowbells High School, math goes beyond the classroom.

“Let’s see if I can remember them all. OK, I’m the math teacher, I’m the tech coordinator, I’m the secretary-treasurer on the fire department, driver on the ambulance, I manage the pool during the summer, I’m the president of the Bowbells Education Association, I am a bus driver. Oh, another one, I forgot PTO. I’m the vice president of the PTO,” said Golde.

Cyle’s many uses of math make him like so many other teachers found across North Dakota: a vital member of his community in a variety of ways.

“If somebody’s having a heart attack, that’s life or death right there,” said Golde.

That over-involvement, practiced by teachers in small communities like Bowbells, has an outsized impact on one group especially: students.

“It’s just really nice to see that they care about the community, and you’re that community, so they care about you. And just seeing them pour their hearts and their souls into other people just kind of … it’s really good role modeling,” Cambry said.

Cyle’s enthusiasm is borne out of a simple life philosophy: “I don’t know, I just see something, and I’m just like, ‘Oh, I could probably go help that person,’” he said.

An aspirational motto that influences students and keeps communities like Bowbells a great place to live.