{"id":46680,"date":"2025-02-11T13:50:41","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T12:50:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/test.steinmuehle.de\/blog\/2025\/02\/11\/working-with-heart-energy-and-expertise-goodbye-dear-janine-kuester\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T07:19:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T05:19:14","slug":"working-with-heart-energy-and-expertise-goodbye-dear-janine-kuester","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/blog\/2025\/02\/11\/working-with-heart-energy-and-expertise-goodbye-dear-janine-kuester\/","title":{"rendered":"Working with heart, energy, and expertise: Goodbye, dear Janine K\u00fcster!"},"content":{"rendered":"

With deep gratitude and many heartfelt words, Steinm\u00fchle bids farewell to a valued colleague: Janine K\u00fcster, principal of the Steinm\u00fchle Bilingual Elementary School. Her dedication and passion for the school have left a lasting impression\u2014on both the students and the faculty. <\/p>\n

In the run-up to the official farewell ceremony, the elementary school children said, \u201cGoodbye, Janine!\u201d The girls and boys lined up to form a guard of honor as their teacher walked down the stairs. Many of them reached out toward her, trying to shake her hand; some managed to give her a hug or take a selfie, and a few had tears rolling down their cheeks. Some mothers comforted their children. Man, was that hard! A few parents also expressed their appreciation in person. And it became clear: a very beloved teacher is leaving. <\/p>\n

Janine K\u00fcster, born in 1992, took on the demanding role of director at a remarkably young age. After completing her teaching internship, she began working at Steinm\u00fchle, with only a stint abroad in the U.S. in between, which further improved her already excellent English skills. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Shaped and established a bilingual focus<\/strong><\/p>\n

From the very beginning\u2014the 2019\u201320 school year\u2014she poured her heart and soul into establishing and developing the Steinm\u00fchle Bilingual Elementary School. She taught German, math, and music with great enthusiasm and supported the students not only academically but also personally. Her commitment extended far beyond the classroom: She played a key role in shaping and establishing the school\u2019s bilingual program. <\/p>\n

Janine K\u00fcster also found happiness in her personal life at Steinm\u00fchle. She started a family with Fabian K\u00fcster, a member of the school\u2019s IT team. About two and a half years ago, she became the mother of her son Lenny, which marked the beginning of a new chapter in her life. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A difficult step<\/strong><\/p>\n

As someone who sets high standards for herself, Janine K\u00fcster found it increasingly difficult to balance both roles\u2014principal of an elementary school and mother. It was therefore with a very heavy heart that she decided to step down from her roles as a teacher and principal. Her colleagues, as well as parents, deeply regret her departure and bid her farewell with warm words, affectionate hugs, and the occasional gift. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Thanks and Appreciation<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the farewell party held in the elementary school classrooms, Janine K\u00fcster thanked everyone who had helped her over the years with advice and support. She shared examples of particularly funny and memorable moments, explained her decision\u2014which she said she made with mixed feelings\u2014and revealed that the K\u00fcsters\u2019 family planning isn\u2019t quite finished yet. <\/p>\n

Principal Bj\u00f6rn Gemmer, Managing Director Dirk Konnertz, and former principal Bernd Holly, among others, expressed their appreciation for her work in brief remarks. They mentioned that the Steinm\u00fchle Bilingual Elementary School\u2014which had been established thanks to the initiative of school association chairman Egon Vaupel\u2014had been significantly shaped and influenced by Janine K\u00fcster. The group then raised their glasses together to toast the future and proceeded to enjoy the buffet. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Looking forward to digging up the time capsule<\/strong><\/p>\n

Steinm\u00fchle would like to thank Janine K\u00fcster for her tireless work, her energy, and her warm personality. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors\u2014both professionally and personally!<\/p>\n

Janine K\u00fcster is already looking forward to Steinm\u00fchle\u2019s high school graduation ceremony in 7 years. That\u2019s when she plans to dig up the time capsule she once buried on the Steinm\u00fchle grounds with \u201cher\u201d children. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Words that linger:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

“An emotional moment. It was a difficult decision for me. It’s not easy for me to say goodbye” (Janine K\u00fcster)<\/em> <\/p>\n

“Working with Hannah (Achenbach) and Lori (Lorraine Herrmann) has been a truly enriching experience for me. We planned, ate, and organized” (Janine K\u00fcster)<\/em> <\/p>\n

“Things went pretty well for you today” (A student, speaking to Janine K\u00fcster shortly after the bilingual elementary school opened)<\/em><\/p>\n

“We’ve seen it: She’s energetic, she knows her stuff, and she’s not afraid to take on a challenge. You didn’t just combine the Hessian curriculum and the Cambridge curriculum\u2014you also overcame conflicts and challenges” (Bj\u00f6rn Gemmer, principal)<\/em> <\/p>\n

“The Bilingual Elementary School is your brainchild. You have played a crucial role in getting us to where we are today” (Dirk Konnertz, Managing Director)<\/em> <\/p>\n

“You left your heart and tears at school” (Bernd Holly, former principal)<\/em><\/p>\n

“You’ve accomplished a lot here. You’ll always be a part of us” (Lori Herrmann, former assistant principal of the Bilingual Elementary School) <\/em> Angela Heinemann<\/em> <\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With deep gratitude and many heartfelt words, Steinm\u00fchle bids farewell to a valued colleague: Janine K\u00fcster, principal of the Steinm\u00fchle Bilingual Elementary School. Her dedication and passion for the school have left a lasting impression\u2014on both the students and the faculty. In the run-up to the official farewell ceremony, the elementary school children said, \u201cGoodbye, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":46688,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,102,85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bilingual-elementary-school","category-former-students-alumni","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50875,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46680\/revisions\/50875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}