By Tena L Cook, Marketing Coordinator, CSC
CHADRON, Neb. — Jordon Cooper, a 2016 Chadron State College graduate, has been named the 2025 Wyoming Middle School Physical Education Teacher of the Year by the Wyoming Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (WAHPERD).
Cooper has taught physical education and health at Lander Middle School in his hometown of Lander, Wyoming, since fall 2016. Reflecting on how his career began, Cooper recalled the moment he received the job offer.
“I was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to the national PE convention in Minneapolis in 2016,” Cooper said. “My dream was to teach in Wyoming, where I grew up. Lander Middle School called while I was in Minneapolis and offered me the sixth-grade PE/health teaching position. I was jumping up and down, yelling, ‘I got the job’ in the middle of the convention center.”
That opportunity followed a memorable interview process in Lander, where Cooper taught a 20-minute PE lesson based on activities he had observed at the SHAPE Nebraska Convention in 2015.
Since then, Cooper has made a significant impact at Lander Middle School. One of his major accomplishments was transforming a 45-by-30-foot auxiliary gym into a weight room with a grant from celebrity trainer Jake Steinfeld. He learned about the “Don’t Quit” initiative through a colleague who shared a link on social media.
“I knew what to say and the angle to take. Our librarian knew how to bring the words to life,” Cooper said. “We submitted our video, and a month later found out we were finalists. We found out we won on a Zoom call with Jake Steinfeld. Never in a million years did I think the governor of Wyoming and a celebrity trainer would be running up and down the bleachers, high-fiving my students.”
The renovation began in August 2023, when custodians installed rubber flooring. Steinfeld later sent a team to assemble equipment, and the project culminated in a Don't Quit celebration and grand opening Oct. 13, 2023. The fitness center is valued at approximately $100,000.
In addition to facility improvements, Cooper has expanded programming opportunities for students. He introduced Dotball360, a team paddle sport he discovered at a national SHAPE convention in Seattle.
“It’s kind of a combination of pickleball, volleyball and roundnet,” Cooper said.
Through grant writing, Cooper has also secured a wide range of equipment using grants from foundations and Covid funds. These include 28 mountain bikes, helmets and protective pads, 40 heart-rate monitors, three Smith-machines and three 255-pound plate sets. A grant through the National Archery in the Schools Program, in partnership with Wyoming Game and Fish, funded additional archery equipment.
Cooper credits his time at Chadron State for preparing him for success in the classroom.
“I didn’t realize how little I knew about special education until I took those classes,” he said. “The variety of PE courses prepared me to teach individual, dual, team and nontraditional activities.”
He also said faculty members Dr. Dawn Brammer and Dr. Donna Ritzen emphasized the importance of planning and adaptability.