Linda (Ferry) Prechtl
Linda (Ferry) Prechtl, an adjunct faculty member in the College of Education, was recently recognized by President Stephen Kolison Jr., as the recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching.
Since 2010, Mrs. Prechtl has been an adjunct lecturer in Pre-K to Grade 6 Literacy program at Fredonia. In this role, she implements curriculum using academic learning strategies and educational pedagogy, utilizing lectures, discussions, group work and demonstrations in literacy methods. She is also a teaching methods instructor in the highly regarded Helen R. Johnson Fredonia-Hamburg Internship Program for SUNY Fredonia education majors.
From 1983 until 2008, Mrs. Prechtl was an elementary literacy teacher/literacy coach for the Dunkirk City School District. In this role, she assessed and provided instruction in reading and writing for struggling K-5 students. She participated in an American Federation of Teachers Education, Research and Dissemination program in 1999-2000, receiving training in reading comprehension best practices and learning strategies for K-5 teachers, and presented workshops and courses for district teachers. She was a substitute teacher for the Dunkirk district until 2020, and from 2000 until 2010 was an After School Coordinator for the school district.
From 2009 until 2012 Mrs. Prechtl was a research assistant, supporting research and development efforts of Arizona State University faculty Dr. Gary Ladd and Dr. Becky Ladd to develop a cooperative learning program (4 Our SUCCESS) for elementary students. She collected data and coordinated local program research with six classrooms of students and teachers in grades 3 through 5 in partnership with former Fredonia faculty member Dr. Larry Maheady.
Mrs. Prechtl is a graduate of the SUNY Fredonia Class of 1971, having earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. She earned her master’s degree in Reading from Fredonia in 1976. Her first teaching job was as a third grade teacher at West Valley (N.Y.) Central School from 1971 to 1981.
Since 1987, Mrs. Prechtl has also worked for the Boys and Girls Club at Chautauqua Institution.
A former student from a literacy methods class noted, “Her kind, caring, and understanding demeanor served as both a tremendous support and as a model of what successful educators do. She helped to foster our confidence as new teachers and helped us to believe that we could not only be successful in the classroom, but that we could make a difference in the lives of children.” A colleague in the College of Education noted, “Quite simply, Linda’s dedicated and professionally informed work with our students and faculty is exceptional.”
Among her other honors is being named the WIVB Teacher of Week, receiving the prestigious Dunkirk City School District William T. Colman Award in 2017 and being named a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow.
