Dr Gary Bennerotte
Upon the death of Dr. Gary Bennerotte, his wife Sue and their daughters Renee, Amy and Kara wanted to honor the memory of their late husband and father and still keep his passion for education alive. Sue, along with contributions from family and friends, established an endowed scholarship known as the Dr. Gary Bennerotte Memorial Scholarship. This award is the first of its kind at Northwest as it will be awarded to a student pursuing the specialist in educational leadership degree.
Bennerotte was an assistant professor in Northwest's Department of Educational leadership for 13 years and was in charge of the specialist degree program for six years before retiring in 2003. He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from South Dakota State University in Brookings and his Ed.D. from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.
His delight in education started in a country school in southeast Minnesota. He was a junior high and high school math teacher in Missouri Valley, Iowa, as well as a high school principal and physics teacher in Walnut, Iowa. In addition, Bennerotte was superintendent of Willow Community Schools in Quimby and Washta, Iowa, Wakefield (Neb.) Schools, Central Lyon Schools in Rock Rapids, Iowa, and Worth County Schools in Grant City. After retirement, Bennerotte taught math GED classes for three years.
As Bennerotte's health declined, family, friends, church and Northwest were sources of joy, comfort and pride. He loved teaching at Northwest and considered it an honor to interact with students and staff.
Scholarships associated with Dr Gary Bennerotte