At the Lindbergh Schools Foundation Scholarship Night April 3, pictured above, the very first Dr. Mary Louise Zieger Scholarship was awarded to LHS senior Alexis Gralike who will be attending Missouri State University in Springfield to study elementary education in the fall.
A 38-year educator in the district, Zieger left the Lindbergh Schools Foundation nearly $1.7 million in her estate to continue her legacy of supporting public education by creating a four-year college scholarship for a high school senior planning to go into education.
“Dr. Zieger’s remarkable life journey was characterized by her unwavering commitment to education and her unrelenting passion for making a positive impact in the lives of others,” Lindbergh Schools Foundation Executive Director Erica Keating said. “As a final testament to her commitment to education, her parting gift to the world was a scholarship fund, a legacy gift that will ensure that her passion for teaching lives on in future generations of educators as well. We are honored and grateful to be the stewards of her generous gift.”
Zieger earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Missouri Valley College in 1959 and followed this with a Master of Science in Education from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in 1965. She later earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree from St. Louis University in 1969.
While earning her master’s degree, Zieger was concurrently teaching fifth grade at Sappington Elementary School. She taught from 1959 to 1967, before taking a brief sabbatical leave from 1967 to 1968, likely when she was working on her doctorate. She returned to the district to serve as an administrative assistant at The Middle School from 1968 to 1970, and later as the assistant principal at Sperreng Middle School from 1970 to 1974. She then resumed teaching, this time fourth-grade students at Long Elementary School, until she retired in 1997. In recognition of her dedication and impact, Zieger was honored as a Lindbergh Distinguished Educator in the same year of her retirement.