Say ‘hi’ to Kathy Kurtzleben

Kathy Kurtzleben at the Warrior Crossing. Photo by Darien Walsh.

By Darien Walsh

With the start of a new year, many new faces are found on campus. Students aren’t the only new people to Waldorf though. The Warrior Crossing has a new employee: Kathy Kurtzleben. Kurtzleben is the newest addition to the Waldorf Food Service family.

Kurtzleben applied to work at Waldorf after teaching preschool. “I’ve always admired this institution in Forest City,” says Kurtzleben, “I taught Pre-K at Hanson Life Center, and I loved the students who would intern there. I enjoyed the kids. It’s neat to be a part of Waldorf. I like what they offer the students.”

Kurzleben’s favorite part of working in the crossing is the students. “They’re fun. I came for the students,” says Kurtzleben, “I love the interaction with the kids. We try to motivate them, and encourage them to set goals, both financially and professionally. I want to encourage them to do their best.”

The difficult parts of Kurtzleben’s job are memorizing the coffees and remembering names. “The biggest challenge is learning personal names for everyone.”

When she’s not at the crossing, Kurtzleben is enjoys spending time with her son, daughter and granddaughter.

“I love the outdoors and working with people. I guess that’s why I got a degree in education,” Kurtzleben says. “I’m all about education. It opens so many doors to so many possibilities. Education is such a wonderful investment, and it gets you to where you want to go.”

“I’m a farm girl at heart,” says Kurtzleben. She worked in livestock before working as a pre-k teacher. If she could have her dream job, Kurtzleben would be out on the farm.”I would be a farmer. I would raise and run cattle. I love livestock.”

Having spent 7 years at college herself, Kurtzleben advises students, “You know those classes that you are passionate about? Pursue those. I can’t stress that enough.”