Captain Jenna Weiner - '04

Jenna Weiner did not spend her entire childhood here at District 21, but the few years spent at Tarkington made a large impact on her. The waves of the lessons learned during that time ripple through to adulthood, where she is now a Captain in the United States Marine Corps and an instructor at the University of Maryland, helping to guide future officers towards leadership roles within the military. 

When looking back, it’s obvious to Jenna now, that she is who she is because she spent time here. More specifically, because Mr. Fisher, her third-grade teacher at Tarkington, helped usher into her a key character trait, one that has steered the trajectory of her life and her choices: one that you might call grit, or determination, or perseverance. Whatever word you assign it, Jenna has it in spades.

Mr. Fisher kept up in his classroom a record book, akin to Guinness, but for his third graders. His students held zany records like “biggest shoe size,” or, “most laps ran around the playground during recess.” His whole goal was to motivate his students, inspiring them to set goals and stick to them so that they could put themselves on the record board.

Jenna remembers one specific record she tried to break, relentlessly, writing out numbers on a scroll. She committed to writing out every number, starting with one, and then two, and then three…It got to the point where she would be awake in the middle of the night, relentlessly writing out numbers into the forty, fifty, and sixty-thousands, and her father had to put his foot down, confiscating the scroll of numbers. Like an itch you can’t scratch so you keep itching, Jenna wrote because she could not give up. That undying drive has stayed with her ever since.

It guided her through her Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Miami in Ohio, where she earned her degree in Kinesiology (Exercise Science).  And after that, a Master of Science in Exercise Physiology. It got her through Officer Training School in the Marine Corps, and led her all the way to her position now. 

It carried her through college, where she played Division I soccer at Miami University. And it supports her now in her love of fitness and health. The power of goal-setting and hard work, instilled in her from this young age, have become the foundational aspect of what she teaches the future marine corps officers now.

And she hopes her students, and those at District 21, know that their teachers will help them as they pursue their goals. She knows that this time at school is precious, for the very reason that you are surrounded by people who want nothing more than to see you succeed. “Take advantage of the fact that teachers were once students…take advantage of the wealth of knowledge that they can provide,” she says. Learned through her own role as an instructor, and by watching her younger sister, Kayla Weiner, now a second-grade teacher at Field, Jenna has seen firsthand the impact educators can have. She and her sister even grew up watching their educator father—a teacher at Wheeling High School for 30 years—live that same calling. Jenna comes from a group of those that live to lead, support, and give back. It’s what drew her to the military, and continues to guide her today.

Whether in the classroom, alongside fellow Marines, or in the gym, Jenna leads with the same determination first sparked in a third-grade classroom, proof that even the smallest moments can leave a lasting mark.

If you know someone who embodies the spirit and values of our school district—whether a student, staff member, or alumnus —we’d love to hear about them! Please send their name and a few details to [email protected]  so we can consider featuring their story in an upcoming profile.