Each year, each District in the U.S./Toronto Region names one person its Distinguished Lasallian Educator of the Year. For 2007, the District of San Francisco has given this honor to Gregory Kopra, who has worked in the District since 1991. Greg first served at La Salle High School in Milwaukie, Oregon, as teacher and counselor, and then as Vice Principal and Dean of Studies. For the past eight years he has worked in the District Office of Education at Mont La Salle in Napa, California as Assistant Director.
Greg is a member of the District Leadership Team, the District Mission Council, and the Regional Mission Formation Board. He has taught at the Buttimer Institute of Lasallian Studies and the Lasallian Leadership Institute, and has been a frequent presenter at the Huether Lasallian Conference. He is the author of "The" Mission Becomes "Our" Mission (MEL Bulletin #35, 2007) and of an essay in A Lasallian Practice: The Presence of God (MEL Bulletin #21, 2005). He has also served as editor of two collections of Prayer Services: 40 Prayer Services on Lasallian Themes and Twelve Virtues of a Good Teacher. Greg is a graduate of Gonzaga University, has masters degrees from the University of Portland and Portland State University, and is currently working on a doctorate in educational leadership at the University of San Francisco.

The citation for Greg reads as follows:

Greg Kopra has distinguished himself not simply as a Lasallian educator of students but as an educator of Lasallian educators. It is especially appropriate that Greg should be recognized at this conference, with its theme of “literacy as the gateway to a human and Christian education,” because since joining the District of San Francisco’s Office of Education in 1999, he has helped to form hundreds of us in what might be called “Lasallian Literacy.” Greg has been instrumental in forming and animating Lasallians by bringing alive for us the history, principles, meaning, and conduct of Lasallian education. His efforts span the spectrum from basic orientations and small workshops to higher-order reflections upon the Lasallian charism and participation in significant Regional and international initiatives. As a presenter and a writer, as a facilitator of encounters, retreats, and discussions, as a producer of resources, he has provided an incredible service to the educational enhancement of the Lasallian mission throughout the District of San Francisco District and beyond, and his work consistently reflects not only his breadth of knowledge but also his depth of character and his personal integrity. Greg’s ability to respond with resources and services suited to the requirements of each group that needs his help, and his creativity and apt use of technology in his presentations and programs, are hallmarks of his work. He also brings a great personal love and commitment to his work, and is constantly striving to improve. With his enormous energy and genuine humility, he has been an inspiration for both Brothers and Partners. His evident faith and zeal exemplify what the Lasallian educational mission is all about. For his efforts on behalf of “Lasallian Literacy,” and for his profound contributions to forming an entire generation of leaders in this mission, Greg Kopra very much deserves to be recognized by the District of San Francisco as its Distinguished Lasallian Educator for 2007.

Greg Kopra and the other Distinguished Lasallian Educators from across the Region will be acknowledged at the Huether Lasallian Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. The Conference is November 15 -17, 2007, and its theme is "Literacy: Gateway to a Human and Christian Education." For information on the Huether conference, go to www.cbconf.org.