Sartell, Richard M.

https://reflections.mndigital.org/catalog/stc:6852#/kaltura_audio

Biographical Information: Richard Sartell was born in 1941 in St. Cloud, Minnesota. His father's family had lived in Sartell, Minnesota, since 1853. In fact, the town was named for his great-great-grandfather, who was a miller in the area. His mother's family came from Sweden and Nova Scotia. Sartell's father was a bus driver for Greyhound for 30 years. Sartell attended the Riverview Campus Lab School at St. Cloud State starting  in the fall of 1946. He attended here until the ninth grade, then moved to Tech High School, where he graduated in 1959.

Transcript Summary: Sartell spoke mostly about his experience at the Riverview Campus Lab School, where those who were studying to become teachers at St. Cloud State observed and practiced teaching. Sartell did explain some of his family history, which includes the fact that the town Sartell was named for his family. He discussed the experience of having so many student teachers, believing that it led to a much better education than was available at the public schools at the time. Sartell explained how the elementary students interacted with the college and he felt as much a part of the student body as the college students at St. Cloud State.

Sartell named several of his teachers and those he felt were most effective. He mentioned Ruth Cadwell, Ed Colletti, Harvey Waugh, and several others. He claimed that many of the teachers were very demanding, but felt it led him and the other students to learn more and be more successful. Sartell discussed some of the physical changes that began taking place as he was attending Riverview, such as the demolition of the Old Main Building and the construction of Stewart Hall. Sartell described the transition from Riverview to Tech High School, claiming that it was pretty seamless. Sartell explained the relationship between the school and the community, believing that there was simply not much interaction between the two. Finally, he expressed about his disappointment in the closing of the Lab School at St. Cloud State in 1983.