State High German teacher Richard Polka, has announced his retirement. Polka has been teaching within the State College Area School District for 19 years at both the middle and high school levels.
“One of my main goals was to give kids the opportunity to learn about the German language and culture and have opportunities to travel to join these people’s countries,” Polka said.
Polka has been teaching in the high school for eight years and has created unique opportunities for so many students. One of his biggest projects has been the German Exchange program, which he joined in 2017.
“That’s been fun, and it’s been fun to watch kids experience things for the first time,” Polka said about the program.
One of Polka’s colleagues, German teacher Kimberly Geiger, also spoke positively on the experience.
“All of the great stuff that he’s done for kids here, the exchange being one of them, there is a ton of work that goes into that. He does not get paid to do that. He does that because he loves the experience of it and he thinks it’s good for kids,” Geiger said.
Polka has not only left his impact on other teachers and peers but also on students. Junior Owen Jacobson spoke about his experience with the German exchange trip.
“I had the privilege of going on the State High exchange program in Germany, in which he was the head coordinator of our side of it, so I really do have a lot of experience with [Polka],” Jacobson said. “And I gotta say, because of all he does, I was able to really get a grasp on German culture and language, something that you wouldn’t see in every teacher.”
Polka is also known for his consistent teaching strategies, staying very hands-on, and being very direct with the students in giving them knowledge about German culture.
Jacobson also noted that he is very quick but also meaningful with the way he teaches, learning a lot in a short amount of time. “Well I will say that his teaching is quite hands-on. He’s very direct when he teaches and I did learn a lot from him, not only about the German language but also German culture, politics, and history”
Jacobson also had a lot of praise for how Polka recognizes his students’ needs.
“Herr Polka does recognize that we do need to get up from our seats a lot, and so he does like to have a lot of Quizlet live activities. And when we get up, and we kind of do like competing against one another, we compete with one another in the class and quiz live. And you know, it’s not really anything out of the ordinary, but it is definitely something that makes German class more special and fun, and I do very much appreciate him for that,” Jacobson said.
Jacobson expressed his gratitude towards Polka “I’m very thankful for Herr Polka for teaching German for so long and for everything he does, especially with the exchange program. So, thank you Herr Polka” Jacobson said.
Polka, while reflecting on his career, recalled a special gift he got as a present from students one year. “I had a group of students who would sort of bring gifts at times, and I still have a three foot stuffed gorilla and a Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts at one point,” Polka said.
Polka has left an impact on this district and specifically the language department, leading by example of how to put students first.
Every great career comes to an end, and now, Polka can look forward to a nice retirement.
“Not having to check papers, that’s probably the hardest part of the job.” Polka said. “Looking forward to not having to do that anymore, but I’ll definitely miss all of the students and the other teachers here.”
