Many students have probably seen this beloved social studies teacher as they walk through the hallway, but may not know much about her beyond her kind smile and positive attitude. Her name is Kelly Julian, and she has left a positive impact at Middleton High School (MHS) in many ways.
Growing up, Julian always had an interest in writing and current events. Combining these two passions, she chose to major in journalism at University of Wisconsin (UW)-Madison, with aspirations of becoming a lawyer. But after spending a few years working in a law firm, she discovered her enthusiasm for social studies.
She determined that this passion resulted from “being able to engage with people first.” With her other interests in writing and current events, Julian decided to become a teacher.
Her career as a teacher began at Bellville High School, a few years prior to her position at MHS. There, she taught a wide range of classes, from World History and, English 9, to Mythology, Newspaper, and even Colonial Justice one year. Julian has been at MHS for seven years and currently teaches Land, People, and Power (LPP) and World Religions.
Outside of the classroom, Julian is also involved in MHS’s extracurricular activities. As the girls’ head coach for cross country, she frequently connects with students outside of academics and shares her own love of running with them. As the sport draws to its close for the year, she looks forward to the end of the season.
Julian also served as the previous advisor of The Cardinal Chronicle. While she is sad to no longer be advising, she still carries an interest in the newspaper and hopes to see its authenticity and quality maintained, even “in a world where everything’s just a clickbait”. She is looking forward to seeing both the lighthearted and the hard-hitting articles that come from the newspaper.
As a message to her students, Julian expressed that “you guys are just so inspiring for future generations and […] are going to be our leaders soon.”
