Talley enters fifth decade teaching in Geneva/FC

By Dianne Girmus
The Nebraska Signal

Life is exciting as we never know where it will take us.
Fillmore Central business teacher Cindy Talley has held this position for four decades and has been a great asset to the school. Never planning on being a business teacher, a simple sentence led her to this exciting, fulfilling career,
The sentence was easy to understand and established her rewarding path in life. “During high school (at Fairbury), typing was a required course.” Okay, not a difficult request, so Talley signed up, liked the class, did well and ended up taking every business class the school offered.
“I was fortunate to encounter two business teachers who were great mentors and I felt the classes would lead me to a career working in a business,” Talley said. “My husband, whom I was dating at the start of college and his family, along with two college instructors I had, encouraged me to combine my love of business with teaching.”
Talley began teaching at Benedict High School in 1978 with an eighth grade typing class and the rest being grades nine-12 high school classes which she taught for two years.
Desiring to get back closer to her husband Don’s hometown of Friend in 1980, she applied for and was hired for a business position at Geneva High School. At that time, the building held classes for grades seven-12 and there were three business teachers, JoAnn Trumper, Bonnie Sibert and Talley.
“I was assigned to teach “Basic Business” classes: Accounting, team taught Independent Living with the Home Economics Teacher, Jr. High General Business, Business Math and Advanced Accounting—taught voluntarily to two girls at 7:15 a.m.,” Talley said. “A big part of my day was also teaching and overseeing the Diversified Occupations program—teaching work skill development and overseeing students who went out in the community to work.”
Today, Talley is the lone high school business teacher teaching Accounting, Personal Finance, Advanced Accounting, Ninth Grade Careers, Senior Applied Communication and Entrepreneurship. Other classes taught include Economics and Business Law.
Talley said she has seen big changes throughout her 40 years in Geneva.