After the 2017-2018 school year came to an end, Cass lost many of our beloved teachers to positions at other schools, but the heart of Cass High School still lies on the math hallway. Ms. Rolen has been an inspiration and a guide for many students, past and present, and possesses more school spirit than the rest of the faculty and students combined. On September 7th, 2018, it was announced that Ms. Rolen had been voted Teacher of the Year by her fellow employees here at Cass.  

This is the first time Ms. Rolen has received Teacher of the Year, which many students find shocking. When asked what being Teacher of the Year means to her, Ms. Rolen replies, “It means more than anything to me because these people and this place are my family.  When I moved here in 2007, I didn’t know anyone, and everyone made me feel right at home — most of my colleagues helped me raise my son, Trenton.  I also am very humbled to be named Teacher of the Year for Cass High because we have so many fantastic teachers in the building; to be in the limelight with them is just a huge honor.” Winning teacher of the year was a complete surprise: “I found out when the drumline started playing outside my room, I started dancing, and I thought I had missed a pep rally. I didn’t realize it was for me.” When the drumline showed up at Ms. Rolen’s room to award her with the honor, she says she felt “very special and humble.” Also, when asked what she gets out of being awarded teacher of the year, she answers, “I got roses! And the pep band and the colonel. I also get to make a speech at Baccalaureate, even though I don’t want to speak in front of everyone.”  

Given that her colleagues are responsible for her victory, they all have wonderful things to say about her, including her best friend right down the hall, Mrs. Guilford. She has always been right by Mrs. Rolen’s side, giving each other support, both continuing to impact student lives at Cass High. Mrs. Guilford has a lot to say about her best friend winning Teacher of the Year: 

“I voted for Mrs. Rolen for Teacher of the Year because she is the heart and soul of Cass High School. Everything she does is solely for the students of CHS. There is no finer example of what a Colonel should be than her. I am so proud that she is finally getting the credit and honor that she so fully deserves for making the Colonel Family such a tight-knit community that I am so proud to be a part of. I am so proud of my BFF!” 

Mrs. Wilson, Cass’s beloved visual arts teacher, was asked what made her vote for Ms. Rolen, and she responded, “She’s the most dedicated woman I’ve ever met. To everything: to students, faculty, Trenton, to Guilford. She’s an incredible person; she is funny, sassy, and sees the whole picture but can still break it down when she needs to.” Mrs. Wilson described her as the sand in a jar of pebbles. “She fills in the gaps that you don’t even realize exist. She had ‘loved blue and lived gold’ long before Nelson ever coined the term for Cass High School. She is what you should want to strive to be.”