by Dennis Dalman
Karrie Fredrickson, a Sartell social-studies teacher, is one of three St. Cloud area teachers who has just been nominated for the 2025 “Minnesota Teacher of the Year Award.”
The others are Chris Ann Johnson, who teaches chemistry and physics at St. Cloud’s Apollo High School; and Jill Zimpel, a kindergarten teacher at Sauk Rapid’s Pleasantview Elementary School.
Those three are among 142 teachers in the state nominated for the prestigious award, which is given annually by “Education Minnesota,” an educators’ union. The winner will be announced May 4 during an honors banquet in St. Paul. This will be the 61st annual “Minnesota Teacher of the Year” award ceremony.
During her 30 years of teaching in Sartell, Fredrickson has won multiple honors, including just this past fall the Regional Earl Reum Award from the National Association for Student Activities. Last spring she was named Central Division Advisor of the Year by the Minnesota Association of Honor Societies.
The Earl Reum award is given to an individual for outstanding work in the training and mentoring of student-activity advisors. The award recognizes teachers from four regions of the United States: Central, Eastern Southern, Western. Fredrickson was named best in the Central U.S. region.
Besides having taught social studies for 30 years in Sartell, Fredrickson has also served as an advisor to both the SHS Minnesota Honor Society and the Sartell Student Council. She is currently an advisor to the Minnesota Association of Honor Societies. There she works monthly with the student-executive board at the state Minnesota Association of Secondary School Principals office. She also provides advisor training throughout the year at conferences.
Fredrickson was born in 1971 at the St. Cloud Hospital, then grew up in St. Joseph, the daughter of Patricia and Harvey Kolodjeski. She earned a degree in social science secondary education from the College of St. Benedict and then a master’s degree in education from St. Mary’s University.
Karrie Fredrickson
