When TEACHER APPRECIATION DAY ended, I reflected on the 37 years I've taught at Hobart High School:
Have kids changed in those years? Not really - still interested in same subjects; still worried about same issues. Have parents changed? A little - their kids are still their best legacy. Has society changed? Technologically more than anything. (When I started teaching, I didn't even own a calculator! My parents gave me one that did the 4 major functions as a Christmas gift! Now, I think I can't possibly do grades without the computer!)
In all 37 years, I really have felt "appreciated" - subject matter probably had the most impact on that. I LIKE living in Hobart - grocery store clerks know where I'm parked!
So, why do I feel "validated"? In high school, I was president of our Future Teachers of America club.
(look and laugh below:)
http://hobart.schoolwires.com/1413202693052303/blank/browse.asp?A=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&C=57618
Worked like a dog planning activities, field trips, so on. (Actually went to a school board meeting when Richard Lugar was on the Indianapolis School Board!)
On Senior Awards Day, I did not even know there was a Future Teacher Award until SOMEONE ELSE received it! I was devastated. (I heard that she did NOT even become a teacher!) Since that day, I have wanted to prove myself. In 1993, I received an award that was given by my peers (or a committee who I always thought gave the award to me because my sister and nephew moved in with me!)
This year, I am honored, excited, humbled by accepting the Hobart Chamber of Commerce / Hobart Education Foundation Outstanding Educator Award for Hobart High School. (They select a high school, a middle school, and an elementary school teacher.)
I do feel "validation."
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About Me
- S.A.M.
- I went to Northwest High School. My Bachelor and Master degrees are from Indiana State University. I was part of the Communications Department at Hobart High. I taught speech, English, Challenge School, Senior GT. I was a mentor for Team LEAD. I was Theatre Director and Genesius Players sponsor. I no longer teach theatre, but I am the biggest fan of Genesius Players! I received awards: Inland-Steel Ryerson Teacher of the Year; 2009 Outstanding Educator; and Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. My twin sister, Sharon, was an instructor at Kaplan College. Sharon’s son, Bryan, graduated from Hobart High. Bryan completed his PharmD. degree from Purdue University. He, Amy, (also a PharmD.), and children currently live in Crown Point. My other sister, Jackie, is also a pharmacist. She, her husband, Randy, and their daughters live in Greenfield. My cousin, Vickie, is a teacher in Mooresville. She watched my mom, Mary Lou, who lived in Greenwood. I feel blessed to have been “adopted” by my best friend’s family in Hobart. They gave me Abbey. I like to play hard with my Red Hat group as one of the founders of “Amethyst Aristocrats.”
2 comments:
I am SOOOOO proud of my sister. She's the one I aspire to be like. It is so gratifying to get Hobart graduates at Kaplan College who make sure I know, "I had your sister in High School. She was the best teacher I have ever had!" Congratulations!
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Sharon
ILY!
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