Northern Michigan University English Professor Kel Sassi has been elected vice president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English (MCTE). She is only the second person from the Upper Peninsula to serve in the presidential cycle in the organization's 103-year history. Her term began July 1 and will continue for the next four years as she progresses from vice president to president-elect, president and then past-president for MCTE.
Sassi taught high school English for six years in Fairbanks, Alaska, before pursuing a doctorate at the University of Michigan. After graduating from the joint program in English and education, she taught at North Dakota State University for 14 years, attaining the rank of full professor and also serving as director of the Red River Valley Writing Project.
“One of the joys of returning to the state to work at Northern Michigan University in 2022 has been to reconnect with the people in MCTE," stated Sassi in her letter of interest for the position of vice president. In 2024, she applied to the National Writing Project to launch the Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project in Marquette and is now its director.
Sassi has served as a representative-at-large for MCTE since 2022 and facilitated MCTE's seasonal book group during the 2024-2025 school year. Her experience working with teachers is characterized by recognizing the assets of teachers of all levels K-16, lifting up their work, and finding ways to connect them with leadership opportunities. She looks forward to continuing to support teachers in the shifting political landscape.
“MCTE's anti-racism statement of 2020 has been guiding our anti-racist, multicultural work, leading to an integrated effort that is showing real change in our membership, programming, and leadership," she added. "I want to sustain that momentum and connect more teachers with the joy and inclusivity of Michigan's premier professional organization for ELA.”
Sassi's great-great grandfather Charles Moilanen immigrated from Finland to Ishpeming in 1879, and she is passionate about connecting teachers in the Upper Peninsula with MCTE.
Recently, Sassi was selected as the recipient of the Julia E. Berry Research Award from the National Council of Teachers of English. The award provides research support for an NCTE member who proposes a project that studies “the careers of English Majors and/or the role and function of English in career development.” Sassi will use the award to study “Versatility and Resilience in English Alumni from a Rural-Serving Institution.”