In 1977, Cheri Stock (BA ’74) arrived in Guam with her husband, Don (BA ’72, JD ’75), expecting a short-term adventure. What unfolded instead was a lifelong journey of purpose and impact.
Originally planning to join the Peace Corps in Micronesia, the couple changed course when Don was offered a job as Assistant Attorney General of Guam. Cheri, armed with her University of Iowa teaching degree, soon found herself in a high school classroom — teaching government to a generation of young women at a pivotal moment in Guam’s history.
“It was an extraordinary time,” she recalls. “The island was writing its own constitution, exploring self-governance, and asking big questions about its future. My Iowa Hawkeye background was most useful in this unique time in Guam history. I was teaching the first generation of girls preparing to leave the island for college in the U.S.”
What she didn’t realize then was how deeply her lessons — and her belief in her students — would shape their futures.
Decades later, one of those students, Anne Perez Hattori, now a retiring professor at the University of Guam, reached out to the UI College of Education with a heartfelt request:
“She was my high school government teacher, and I want to thank her. My friends and I often talk about how much she influenced our lives and careers. I hope you can help me find her.”
Thanks to a few exchanged emails, Cheri was reunited with more than a dozen of her former students in Guam. The joyful, emotional gathering was a celebration of shared history and lasting impact.
Those students went on to become groundbreaking engineers, professors, doctors, lawyers, nurses, artists, and elected leaders. One became the first Chamorro female engineer. Another served as the U.S. deputy inspector general in Iraq and nearly won a seat in the U.S. Congress. One became the dean of the University of Guam’s nationally acclaimed nursing program — the first from Guam inducted into the American Academy of Nursing, and another was the Speaker of the Guam Legislature for several terms.
“Those teaching years were my favorite,” Cheri says. “But the most rewarding part has been watching these women grow into leaders who continue to shape and serve their island. The ripple effects are incredible.”
Now nearly five decades later, Cheri remains in Guam, still calling it home.
“I came here to teach,” she reflects. “But what I found was a lifetime of connection, growth, and pride. The rewards of teaching are truly endless.”