UNK’s Alyse Pflanz Honored as Young Professional of the Year

When the time came for the Kearney Chamber of Commerce to recognize their Young Professional of the Year, they didn’t have to look far. Alyse Pflanz, who not only teaches at the University of Nebraska at Kearney but also serves as the Director of the Center for Economic Education, was an obvious choice. Honored for the hard work she does not only for her students but for the entire Kearney community, Pflanz shares that going to work every day is “a lot of fun.”

As a UNK undergraduate student, Pflanz felt that teaching was her calling. After graduation, she worked as a business and technology instructor for grades 7-12 for four years. She “didn’t plan to leave teaching,” but, as she finished graduate school, her previous advisor retired, opening a position that seemed to be made just for her. She “wanted to be involved in education” and is grateful that she “can merge both worlds” by working at the college level.

For the past six years, Pflanz has taught method classes and served as an advisor for preservice teachers. Being able to put her teaching skills to work as she is “in charge of (UNK’s) pre-service business education for teachers,” she enjoys being able to stay involved in K-12 education.

When she isn’t teaching, Pflanz works tirelessly to address the mission of “advancing economic and financial education” while working with “UNK, K-12 schools, and (the) community” as the Director of the Center for Economic Education. In this role, she can build relationships which has always been a hallmark of her teaching career. While a high school teacher, Pflanz served as both a softball coach and a cheer coach. These positions, in addition to her time in the classroom, taught her the importance of making connections with people. Now, whether she is going “into schools (to) put on financial literacy fun nights with families” or presenting “financial literacy rock concerts” at pep rallies, Pflanz is continuing the work she started a decade ago when she walked into her first classroom.

In addition to these fun events, she also hosts weekend workshops and summer institutes. She even makes it possible for young students to visit UNK’s campus by coordinating competitions where middle school students have a chance to show off their business skills. Pflanz stresses that the “strong focus of (the) mission is K-12” which includes training teachers during professional development sessions held both at their home schools and at UNK.

These events and programs are part of the reason she shares that her “job is fulfilling” and that she loves that she still gets to “have that school connection.” As a lecturer at UNK, she also admits that “what’s really cool about (her) job now” is how her students are now her “forever colleagues.”

When Kearney’s Chamber of Commerce recognized Alyse Pflanz as the Young Professional of the Year, her accomplishments included membership in several professional organizations, a long list of awards, research that has been featured in both newspapers and on television, and a wide array of professional service. As impressive as all this is, her students know her as so much more than her much-deserved accolades. They know her as the person who puts her teaching skills to use as she pours into their future careers, stays current by continuing her own studies, and gives back tirelessly to the Kearney community. Alyse Pflanz inspires future educators every day simply by being the teacher she always wanted to be. She brags about UNK and how teaching students is everyone’s top priority. As a Loper, she puts a face to this philosophy as she works tirelessly to inspire students in the community as well as future business teachers. We honor her today and every day as not only Kearney’s Young Professional of the Year, but as the epitome of all we stand for. Here at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, we’re proud of Alyse and all her accomplishments.