Yet Keyser Acknowledges That a Long Career in Education Might Be Written in His DNA

Terry Keyser

Terry Keyser will mark his 20th year as principal of Hemlock Middle School in the 2017-2018 school year.

Adding his previous years as a middle school principal and teacher in New Buffalo -- and time teaching English Language Arts in adult education programs in Saginaw County and Midland County -- one might assume that Keyser is considering retirement.

He’s not.

“Retiring isn’t something I think about,” Keyser said. After all, son Kenton is a junior at Hemlock High School and daughter Reagan is an eighth grader at Hemlock Middle School, so their college costs loom large.

Yet Keyser acknowledges that a long career in education might be written in his DNA.

His mother, Sonya Gay, is teaching second grade in Oklahoma -- at 75 years of age.

“My mother taught at the last one-room schoolhouse in Midland County,” Keyser said. “She worked as a reading specialist in Breckinridge for 40 years before she and her husband moved to Oklahoma. And she’s been teaching there for years.”

Keyser grew up in Midland, graduating from Bullock Creek High School in 1998. He continued his education close to home at Northwood Institute, now Northwood University, graduating with a business degree in 1985.

He worked in the corporate world for a while, but quickly realized that his favorite part of the day came after he clocked out. That’s when he coached young people running track and cross country.

Sensing a new calling, Keyser enrolled at Central Michigan University to pursue a degree in teaching. Teaching and coaching soon grew into positions in school administration.

Keyser’s wife, Karla Keyser, also grew up in the Saginaw Bay area and likes calling mid-Michigan home. Karla teaches seventh grade social studies at White Pine Middle School in Saginaw Township.

Keyser’s hobbies includefishing, downhill skiing, and hiking. He was a distance runner for decades, but decided he wanted to devote the time he spent running to supporting his kids in their activities.

These days, for example, he spends a lot of time at horse shows cheering Reagan and her horse, Wylie, in equestrian competition.

Significant changes during Keyser’s tenure at Hemlock Middle School, he said, are successful bond campaigns n 2002 and 2013, which repaired and updated the structure, which was built in 1970.

The school system has also made a commitment to pair students with laptop computers for classroom and home learning. Fifth-.through eighth-graders access use their Chromebooks to access Internet-based learning resources, submit assignments, and take tests online.

Best ways to reach Keyser are via his email address,, or his school-based telephone: (989) 642-5253.