Teachers boost future enrollment

SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. -- Some might say there’s something in the water at Westmoor Elementary School in Scottsbluff. Others might describe this year’s baby boom as an effort to promote job security.

This year, teachers at the school have produced seven future students.

“Hopefully all of them will be in the same kindergarten class,” said Stacy Celli, one of the seven who recently had a baby. Celli’s daughter, Morgan, was one of the smallest babies born to the group, at 5 pounds, 14 ounces.

Principal Charlotte Browning, who describes the group as “The Magnificent Seven” said that in her more than 30 years of teaching, this is the first time she’s ever heard about seven elementary teachers giving birth in the same school year.

In addition to Celli, who is the only teacher that hasn’t returned to her teaching duties, five other teachers were pregnant — and Lukas Benzel joined the group as a new father — before school ended last May.

While Browning said she doesn’t expect a repeat performance, she said there are two teachers at the school now who are pregnant.

Melissa Sauder, a reading intervention instructor, gave birth to daughter Anley, the smallest baby, who was born a month early; Tiffany Jackson, a multi-categorical teacher, added another son, Cruz, to her family. Sara Luehrs, the school’s social worker, had a son, Carter, the largest in the group at 8 pounds, 8 ounces; Elise Gurrola, who taught as a preschool para last year, had her son Zaide; first-grade teacher Deirdre Amundsen added a daughter, Chloe; and music instructor Benzel’s wife gave birth to a boy, Brendan.

All the babies, moms and dads are healthy and happy.

Zaide Gurrola and Carter Luehrs were both born on May 1 and Elise Gurrola served as Melissa Sauder’s para in the classroom.

“Elisa and I were in the same room and the two of us were going through morning sickness together. That was the biggest challenge,” Sauder said.

Browning said at one point she placed a sign on the break room coffeepot warning staff not to drink from it unless they wanted to add to their families.

“After the fifth one I was shell-shocked,” Browning said. “Then the next one came in and I said, ‘You’re joking, right?’ but they weren’t. My biggest challenge was finding and scheduling substitute teachers, as we had four subs last spring.”

Browning said other teachers would learn that another teacher was pregnant each time the doughnuts arrived.

“We had pink and blue doughnuts brought in each time someone announced they were pregnant. We had a lot of doughnuts last year,” she said.