A friend talked her into returning to school and arranged a graduate assistantship for her at Oregon State University. In 1987 she completed her master's degree in health education with an emphasis on gerontology. In 1993, she completed her Ph.D. in school and community health education with a gerontology emphasis at the University of Oregon. She chose Illinois State over University of Nevada at Las Vegas and California State University at Chico. I was right.
Health education is a great place to do that.
Named the College of Applied Science and Technology Teacher of the Year in spring 1999, Micke considers herself a teacher first and foremost. She traces her vocation to when she was 10 years old. She had two brothers who were developmentally disabled. The youngest did not speak intelligible words until he was 7 or 8, and it was her job to care for and teach him. To be a good teacher, one must go beyond the mechanics of knowing the material and organizing it well, Micke said.