News : We just had to ask: Sibling teachers Alexa Francois & Stephanie Francois Miller

Editor's Note: Vinton-Shellsburg teacher Stephanie Francois-Miller grew up near Dundee, Iowa, worked first at the Dairy Sweet in Lamont, attended school at Starmont and college at Mount Mercy. She is now a special education teacher at V-S and her favorite baseball team is the Minnesota Twins.

All of the above statements also apply to Alexa Francois. The younger sister of Steph (known at Tilford as Mrs. Miller), Alexa is also a special ed teacher at V-S (although she is at the Middle School).

Both also agree that "The Bachelor" is the worst TV show ever, although they attended the same school as the star of this season's show, and Steph actually attended school with him.

We asked Steph and Alexa (who is eight years younger) our "Had to Ask" questions. Their answers are below:

Can you tell us a bit about where you are from?

Steph: We grew up near Dundee, IA and went to Starmont High School. If you've watched "The Bachelor," Starmont is technically has an Arlington address. I went to Mount Mercy University where I Majored in Elementary Education with endorsements in Reading, English/Language Arts and Special Education. I also played volleyball and ran track there. I also have my Master's Degree in social education from Morningside. I have been teaching special education in the Vinton-Shellsburg district from 11 years. I'm currently getting my endorsement in ESL (English as a second language).

Alexa: I also attended Mount Mercy University where I, too, majored in Elementary Education with endorsements in Reading and Special Education.  Again, I also ran track and played volleyball there.  I am currently working on my Master’s degree in special education from Morningside.  I taught my first two years in a level 1 special education program at North Cedar Middle School and was also the head volleyball coach during my time there.  I have spent the last two years in the Vinton-Shellsburg district as the middle school behavior disorder teacher.

Q. Is there anything that your family asks you not to cook, ever again?

Steph: I guess the black bean brownies that I made a couple of times were not a fan favorite from what I hear.

Alexa:  No. I tend to stay within the realm of things I am comfortable with. And if I make something new, I usually am on the phone with mom (who is by the way the BEST cook and baker) 15 times to ensure I don’t mess it up.

Q. Does it matter in your house which way the toilet paper roll goes?

Steph: I'm just lucky if my son hasn't pulled it all off the roll.

Alexa: I prefer it going under.

Q. Tell us about your favorite chair:

Steph: Our couch has an electric recliner. It's amazing!

Alexa: I guess when I was little it was the little blue chair that was in the combine when we got to ride along with mom or dad!

Q. Funniest memory as a parent:

Steph: My son makes me laugh constantly. He is going to be the class clown when he gets into school.

Alexa: Since I am not a parent, I’ll have to go with funniest memory as an aunt.  I was holding my niece Maci, my other sister’s daughter, when she was just a baby.  I was holding her up in front of me talking to her and she puked. Right in my eye.

Q. Funniest thing a teacher ever told you?

Steph: I don't remember any funny quotes, but I had a 4th grade teacher who loved baseball and he would throw things at the kids who were being naughty.

Alexa:  I couldn’t remember any funny thing a teacher told me.  However, I had the same 4th grade teacher as Steph and my funniest memory was he got really mad at a student, threw a pencil (the pencil the student was poking another kid with) in a perfect spiral at the back bulletin board.  It hit the boys bathroom pass, and both the pass and the garbage landed directly in the garbage.

Q. Funniest thing a student ever told you?

Steph: I should keep a journal because I forget them quickly. A recent funny that I did write down: A sweet innocent 1st grade girl changed the topic in the middle of class and told me that she has Frozen posters in her room. A 1st grade boy looked at her like she was nuts and said, "did you say frozen ice turds??????" He was immediately embarrassed.

Alexa:  There are countless funny things that students say to me. Unfortunately, I never take the time to write these down and I forget them.

Q. Best fast food sandwich ever?

Steph: Ham and Cheese at Dunkin’ Donuts

Alexa: Arby’s chicken sandwich

Q. What was your first job?

Steph: I worked at the Dairy Sweet in Lamont, through high school.

Alexa: The Dairy Sweet in Lamont, Iowa, for about five years.  I was the third Francois girl to work at the Diary Sweet and I’d have to say I definitely made the best cone =)

Q. If you were to get a traffic citation it would most likely be for….

Steph: speeding

Alexa: Speeding.  Definitely speeding.

Q. One place in the world you really, really wish you could visit?

Steph: I would love to visit Hawaii. I am ready for nice weather.

Alexa: I’d like to go to Panama and visit our foreign exchange student that we had when I was very young.

Q. First pet you remember?

Steph: Growing up we had a dog named Muffin who was a mutt and a Siamese cat who hid from us most of the time.

Alexa: We had a Dalmatian dog, named Spuds.

Q. Who was your favorite teacher, and why?

Steph: I had a lot of amazing teachers. My favorite teachers were my history and government teachers. My history teacher was also my hurdle coach and my government teacher is now a state senator. They shared a room with a divider at the time and I learned so much from both of them. They changed things up all the time to keep us engaged.

Alexa: My most favorite teacher was my 4th grade teacher.  Everyday after lunch and recess, we would sit in the room with the lights off and he would read stories to us.  The voices he used for the characters were AWESOME!

Q. Tell us about a favorite Christmas present you have received:

Steph: When we were kids we really wanted a 4 wheeler. Our letter from Santa said we had gotten one and when we looked it was a toy 4 wheeler. After embarking on a scavenger hunt we found a real 4 wheeler in the machine shed.

Alexa: We’ve been blessed to have some amazing Christmas’ with my family.  I can’t pick just one present that I’ve received that has been my favorite.

Q. Strangest thing you did at work that was not part of your official job description?

Steph: There are lots of strange things elementary teachers get to do, we all do them because we love our kids.

Alexa: The very first interaction I had with the staff here at the middle school was the first days of in-service.  We were doing ALICE Training, which is the way we are suppose to react if there is an intruder.  We were told to go into a room and an “intruder” would be coming in, which was another teacher.  I immediately jumped up on the counter, grabbed a noodle, and stood quietly against the wall next to the door where the intruder would come in.  I was ready to attack!

Q. What is your favorite big word?

Steph: complacent, my high school track coach gave a speech about complacency once. I am pretty sure it lasted for the whole practice and I will never forget to meaning of that word and where I was sitting during that speech.

Alexa: It’s not necessarily a big word, but I like the word plethora.  

Q. Tell us about one of your pet peeves?

Steph: Complaining about things that are not in our control.

Alexa: Leaving dirty dishes sitting in the sink.

Q. What book or author you have not read, but should?

Steph: Anything that has come out since I had my son.

Alexa: Jodi Piccoult

Q. What happens to the missing socks in the laundry?

Steph: Our washing machine literally eats them. We have had the repairman out for that.

Alexa: If only we could solve this unsolved mystery...

Q. Iowa or Iowa State (or other)?

Steph: Mount Mercy Mustangs

Alexa: Iowa

Q. Was there something your parents said to you, over and over, that you, would growing up, said to yourself, "I will never say that to my kids?"

Steph: Anything my parents have said was well worth their breath. They are amazing. I'm sure I told my parents that I wouldn't be as strict on my kids, except I'm pretty sure I will be.

Alexa:  The way mom made us clean was very meticulous, especially the way we vacuumed.  I swore up and down I wouldn’t care about “making triangles in the carpet!” But, I of course must have it done this way now. Thanks, Mom!

Q. Worst TV show ever?

Steph: The Bachelor...even though I went to high school with the current bachelor.

Alexa: The Bachelor

Q. Best TV show ever?

Steph: The Middle

Alexa: Grey’s Anatomy

Q. What is your dream car?

Steph: Anything that won't break down and doesn't need to be maintained often.

Alexa: Cadillac Escalade

Q. Who should run for President, but hasn't?

Steph: My high school government teacher Mr. Schoenjahn (State Sen. Brian Shoenjahn).

Alexa: I’m not sure about this one...

Q. Tell us your favorite joke

Steph: I have more of a sarcastic dry sense of humor. I don’t tell many jokes. I particularly enjoy the phrase, “do you remember when….., ya me neither.”

Alexa:  Ugh….I don’t have a go to joke.

Q. Share your funniest memory about your sister:

Steph: Alexa was always told that she was beautiful when she was younger. We caught her looking in the mirror once when she was little saying, “I am beautiful.”

Alexa: Well, Steph was talking on the phone to her first boyfriend ever and my other sister, Leah, dared me to get on the other line.  Yes, this was the age of having house phones.  Anyways, I got on the phone and asked him if he had AIDS?  Opps!!  Needless to say, Steph was NOT happy with me!

Q. Fill in the blank: In a perfect winter, it would snow…..

Steph: enough to go sledding once.

Alexa: Enough to go skiing once.

Q. Name your favorite:

Candy bar:

Steph: Reese’s

Alexa: Snickers

Ice cream:

Steph: Neapolitan

Alexa:Snickers ice cream bar (I guess I really like snickers =) )

Color:

Steph: teal

Alexa: Purple

Sports team:

Steph: Mount Mercy Mustangs and the Minnesota Twins

Alexa: Minnesota Twins

Actor/actress:

Steph: I'm going to change this to my favorite athlete, Lolo Jones. I remember her from high school even though I went to a 2A school so I didn't run against her.

Alexa: Channing Tatum

Song:

Steph: Thunderstruck

Alexa: Blackbird

Poem:

Steph: NA

Alexa: The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Planet:

Steph: Earth. ;)

Alexa: Earth

Photograph of yourself:

Steph: My school picture from my 2nd or 3rd year of teaching.

Alexa: Headshot from my senior year of volleyball at Mount Mercy University.

Our serious questions:

Q. When and why did you decide to become a teacher?

Steph: I always wanted to be a teacher. I remember my first grade teacher being somewhat of an idol. I wanted to like her. When I decided to go to MMU someone advised me to get my authorization in special education because it might help me get a job. Shortly after my brother was diagnosed with a disability and I knew that special education was my calling. I feel like I can understand the struggles parents who have students with special needs go through.

Alexa: I’m not sure at what point I decided teaching was going to be the best choice for me.  However, I do know that growing up with a brother who has disabilities definitely directed my way into the special education realm.  Not only did I want to help other students like my brother, but I also saw the struggle that my family went through.  I knew that I wanted to be an advocate for families like ours.

Q. Did growing up together with your sister affect your choice to become a teacher, and how has teaching together affected your sisterhood?

Steph: I wouldn't say growing up with Alexa affected my choice to become a special education teacher. It's been amazing teaching in the same district. We are often times able to bounce ideas off each other. We have worked together for many years in a coach/athlete relationship when I coached her club volleyball team and was one of her track coaches in college so I feel like we work very well together. Prior to Alexa moving to the VS district she was the head volleyball coach at North Cedar. Our teams played against each other when she was coaching there. I would much rather have her on my team.

Alexa: Steph was always the “teacher” growing up.  She always made my cousins and me sit around while she taught us lessons.  I wouldn’t say she had an affect on me choosing the role of a special educator.  Through all of the years of schooling and now teaching, it really has allowed for us to have a common conversational topic.  During college, Steph was able to help me out with any assignments I needed assistance with.  In my first couple years of teaching and coaching, I could always give her a call and ask for some advice about the job.  It was also very helpful to be able to just call and vent with one another about the day at work or about a situation on the volleyball court.  Being in the same district is now just a plus.

And finally :

Q. Is there anything you wish we would have asked you?

Steph: We have 2 other siblings. We have 1 sister between us and a younger brother.

Alexa:  I’m very lucky that both of my sisters have blessed me with the opportunity to be an aunt.  When I’m not busy playing volleyball, I usually can be found hanging out with my niece and two nephews, Maci, Dallas (Leah’s kids), and Jaxon (Steph’s son).