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The early details of Mary Kurth’s career at DMPS were written on a card kept with hundreds of others in an old metal file drawer purchased long before the first computer arrived in the human resources department.

“I did not start teaching with a computer or laptop, copier or copy machine,” Kurth said, remembering her first years at McKinley Elementary School. “No cell phone, not even a two-way radio for the playground.”

Technology in schools has changed a lot since 1978.

Fast-forward 43 years, and Kurth is logging on to Microsoft Teams from her Carver Elementary School classroom to teach 2nd grade students who are learning remotely from their laptops at home.

“Standards are higher than before, and the pace of learning has shifted to keep up with the changing world,” she said. “What stays constant is teacher dedication to meet the needs of their students.”

Her father’s first language was Spanish, though she didn’t become fluent until her high school and college years. Her grandmother was a kindergarten teacher, and she was inspired to follow in her footsteps.

“I do not just teach, I am a TEACHER,” she wrote in an email describing the reason she continued down the path for more than 40 years. “Teaching became more than a career, it’s as an identity (a mindset).”

Kurth is known at Carver for her dedication. Principal Jill Burnett-Requist said when the pandemic made virtual learning a permanent fixture this school year, Kurth volunteered to take on the task.

“She is in frequent contact with students and families in her class,” said Burnett-Request. “Mary is committed to serving and willing to help however she can.”

She’s served her entire teaching career at DMPS. Sixteen years at McKinley, then a handful each at Brooks and Longfellow elementary schools. She was a bilingual coordinator and is finishing 14-years as a kindergarten and second-grade teacher at Carver.

“I’ve stayed because of the great staffs, wonderful families and students, and exceptional training opportunities. It is such a pleasure to see former students and hear about their lives, whether they knew me as Miss Gomez, Mrs. Garcia or now Mrs. Kurth.”

Kurth’s love for teaching has benefited the district beyond her classroom. Three of Kurth’s former kindergarten students returned to DMPS and have classrooms of their own.

She certainly has the admiration of her daughter, Katie Davidson, who remembers her mom working long hours, spending a lot of her childhood at Lakeshore Learning Store and feeling pride when her mom was recognized and greeted warmly in public.

“There could be a book of stories that I can tell you about my mother as an educator with Des Moines Public Schools,” Davidson said. “It would probably be simpler to say that a legend, the blueprint of selflessness service, and one of the greatest teachers is retiring.”

Mrs. Kurth begins a new chapter this summer.  She hopes to fill it with travel and more time with her four granddaughters.

Des Moines Public Schools 2021 Retirees