William Mittlefehldt, ’68, received the 2004 George B.
Walter Service to Society Award, which recognizes alumni who best exemplify
the ideals of a liberal education through socially useful service in their
community, the nation, or the world.
He is a high school teacher in Anoka, Minnesota, but there is much more to his story than that simple description conveys. Since 1974, with imagination, energy, and personal commitment, he has taught social studies, futuristics, environmental issues, and — by example — community service. More than a classroom teacher, although a fine one, he is widely recognized as the author of innovative and effective curricula. In 1987, his high school economics curriculum "Minnesota, Where Are We Growing?" took first prize in the National Economics Award Program. In 1992, he was recognized by the Amway Corporation and Time magazine as one of nine "Earth Teachers" of the year, for his curricular unit "Energy: How Weather Is Created," which earned Anoka High School a $10,000 grant from Amway. In 2002, he was a regional winner of the NASDAQ Distinguished Teaching Award; most recently, he won first place at the secondary-school level of the 3M-sponsored Innovative Economic Education Awards. He has taken student teams to testify before the United Nations, the U.S. House of Representatives Budget Committee, and the Minnesota legislature and has guided many other noteworthy student ventures into the realm of education through activism. He serves on the national advisory board for Rescue Mission Planet Earth and is an advisor to Vermont's Center for a Sustainable Future and a
Lawrence Today magazine, Fall 2004