Remembering Chalkboard Champion Jaime Escalante

One of the most well-known teachers in twentieth-century American history, Jaime Escalante, passed away in 2010, but already his story is fading from our collective cultural memory. Recently I conducted an informal poll of the students, and even a few of the younger teachers, at my Southern California high school. "Do you know who Jaime Escalante is?" I questioned them. Almost every one said they didn't, until I mentioned he was the teacher portrayed by Edward James Olmos in the 1988 movie Stand and Deliver. The recipient of numerous awards and special praise from President Ronald Reagan, Jaime Escalante was a popular and talented teacher who challenged supposedly "unteachable" inner-city Latino students to achieve beyond a level anyone thought them capable of, eventually leading them to unparalleled success on the extremely difficult Advanced Placement Calculus exam. In researching the life story of Escalante for my own book, Chalkboard Champions, I learned some surprising facts about this remarkable educator. For example, the movie never mentions that prior to immigrating to the United States, Escalante earned a degree in mathematics and a teaching credential in Bolivia. Escalante was a veteran teacher with nine years of experience in prestigious schools when he decided to leave his politically unstable homeland and come to America in search of a better life for his family. Once he arrived, unable to speak a word of English, he discovered that his education, training, and experience held no value here. Determined to return to the classroom, Escalante set about learning the English language and earning his university degree all over again. It took him ten years to get back into the classroom, at a significant cut in pay, by the way, but to this dedicated teacher, it was well-worth the hard work. A well-researched and well-written account of Escalante's life can be found in the biographical book Jaime Escalante: The Best Teacher in America by Jay Matthews. For a condensed version of Escalante's life, check out chapter 12 my volume, Chalkboard Champions. Either way, you'll find his story compelling and inspiring.

Chalkboard Champion and Native Hawaiian Gladys Kamakuokalani Brandt

This beautiful lady is teacher Gladys Kamakuokalani Brandt, a Native Hawaiian old enough to have attended the funeral services in 1917 of Queen Liliuokalani, the last reining monarch of Hawaii, and yet young enough to witness the unprovoked attack upon Pearl Harbor in 1941 which precipitated World War II. Gladys began her career as a teacher, working in public schools and eventually becoming an instructor  at the prestigious Kamehameha Schools, a private institution set up to educate Native Hawaiian students.

 

As a youngster, Gladys was deeply ashamed of her Hawaiian heritage, so much so that she rubbed her face with lemon juice to lighten her complexion. By the time she became the principal of Kamehameha Schools, however, she fought tirelessly for the inclusion of courses to preserve Native Hawaiian culture, supporting instruction in Hawaiian language, song, and the controversial standing hula dance which had been forbidden by the school's trustees. The story of her work is an inspirational one.

 

Equally inspirational is the story of the dedication and sacrifice of Hawaii's teachers in the days and weeks following the bombing. From serving as ambulance drivers, setting up shelters for survivors, teaching their students how to use gas masks, taking their students into the sugar cane fields to harvest the crops, and re-establishing some semblance of order for their students when school resumed, their deeds are truly remarkable. You can read about Gladys and her fellow Hawaiian teachers in Chalkboard Champions.

Carter Godwin Woodson: The Chalkboard Champion That Originated Black History Month

Carter Godwin Woodson is often credited with originating annual Black History Month celebrations. He is also recognized as the first African American of slave parents to earn a Ph.D. in History. To be sure, these are noteworthy accomplishments. But there is so much more to this brilliant man's life story than is usually publicized. Did you know that Carter was required much of his childhood to work on the family farm rather than attend school? As a child he taught himself to read using the Bible and local newspapers. He didn't finish high school until he was 20 years old. Were you aware that he once worked as a coal miner in Fayette County, West Virginia, and then later went back there to teach school to black coal miner's children, offering them a model for using education to get out of the mines? Did you know that Carter taught school in the Philippines, and then became the supervisor of schools, which included duties as a trainer of teachers, there? All these biographical details and more can be found in the book Chalkboard Champions.

Chalkboard Champion Anne Sullivan Macy: Her Work with Helen Keller Described in Beyond the Miracle Worker

The Miracle Worker by William Gibson is an iconic piece of American literature that is frequently taught in public schools. Exploring the extraordinary work of teacher Anne Sullivan Macy and her work with deaf /blind student Helen Keller, this award-winning play depicts the exact moment at which, due to Anne's intensive instructional efforts, Helen was able to grasp the concept of language. This knowledge unlocked a world of isolation for the little girl, allowing her to connect with her fellow human beings, and making it possible for her to earn a university degree
at a time when educating women was rare. The scene is sweet. Yet the fifty-year relationship between the teacher and her student was riddled with ambiguity and complexity, as author Kim E. Nielsen demonstrates in her in-depth biography of Anne, Beyond the Miracle Worker: The Remarkable Life of Anne Sullivan Macy and Her Extraordinary Friendship with Helen Keller, published in 2009. The book is a fascinating read for anyone who wants to know more about this remarkable teacher and the instructional strategies she used that were so unique.

You can discover more about this book on amazon.com at the following link:  Beyond the Miracle Worker. I have also included an abbreviated but concise biography of this amazing teacher in my book, Chalkboard Champions, which can also be found at amazon.com at the following link: Chalkboard Champions.

Eliza Mott: The Pioneer Teacher Who Set Up A School in Her Kitchen

One of the most celebrated pioneer teachers in Nevada history was Eliza Mott. She is credited with establishing the first school in Carson Valley, Nevada.

In 1852, this enterprising pioneer wife and mother set up her school in her farmhouse kitchen. Her students sat on bare logs around a crude, wooden table. Armed with a couple of McGuffey Readers, a speller, and an arithmetic book, Eliza welcomed into her school boys and girls dressed in plaid shirts or gingham dresses and home-knit stockings. Some were barefoot and some were wearing rough shoes with hard leather soles. The class ranged in age from five to eleven years in age. Some of the pupils were her own children, and some were her nieces and nephews.

Eliza was born on January 13, 1829, in Toronto, Canada. Her family immigrated to Lee County, Iowa, in 1842, and it was there that the young Eliza developed her skills as a teacher. She excelled at academic subjects and vowed to make great strides in the field of education. At the age of 22, she met and fell in love with Israel Mott, and on April 10, 1850, the pair were married.

As soon as they were married, Israel and Eliza decided to go West . They set out in a Conestoga wagon pulled by two sturdy oxen. In early 1851 they landed in Salt Lake City, where they joined a Mormon wagon train and headed for California, one of a party of thirty families led by the famous Kit Carson. When the caravan stopped to rest at Mormon Station in northern Nevada in July, 1851, Israel decided he like the area so much he wanted to stay there. The couple homesteaded a 2100-acre section of land along the Carson River route, and on this homestead Eliza established her school.

As more pioneer travelers established their farms in the area, the name of Mottsville was given to the settlement. It quickly became apparent that a school was needed. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Eliza still had to run the farm. On an average day, the young pioneer woman would rise before dawn to care for her children, milk the cows, cook breakfast for her family and hired hands, prepare lunches for her students, and then complete her lesson plans. By fall, 1855, the Mottsville School had officially outgrown Eliza's kitchen, and by the next year a schoolhouse was built in town. A schoolmaster was hired from the East, and Eliza resigned as the teacher to care for her family full-time.

This chalkboard champion will always be remembered fondly as the founder of the first school in Carson Valley, Nevada. You can read more about Eliza Mott and other pioneer teachers in Frontier Teachers: Stories of Heroic Women of the Old West by Chris Enss.

John Mason Clarke: Geologist, Palentologist, and Chalkboard Champion

Many chalkboard champions have distinguished themselves in fields other than education. Such is the case with John Mason Clarke, a secondary school teacher who also distinguished himself as a geologist and paleontologist.

John Mason Clarke was born on April 15, 1857, in Canandaigua, New York, the fifth of six children in the family of Noah Turner Clarke and Laura Mason Merrill. As a young boy, he attended Canandaigua Academy where his father was a teacher and principal. After his graduation in 1873, John enrolled in Amherst College where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1877. Following his college graduation, he returned to Canandaigua Academy to serve as an instructor. In 1879–1880, John worked as an assistant to Benjamin K. Emerson at Amherst, then he taught at the Utica Free Academy during the 1880–1881 school year. This was followed by work as an instructor at Smith College from 1881–1882, where he had been offered the position of professor. During his second year at Smith, John published his first three scientific papers, all treating the subject of arthropods.

In 1883, John traveled to Gottingen University for a brief period, and when he returned to the United States he resumed his teaching career at Massachusetts Agricultural College. Meanwhile, he continued his study of the Upper Devonian,  which he hoped to use for his dissertation. In January, 1886 he became an assistant to James Hall at the New York State Museum of Natural History in Albany, New York. He maintained an association with the museum for the remainder of his career.

In 1894 John was named a professor of geology and mineralogy at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Following the death of James Hall in 1898, this talented educator was named New York state paleontologist and was put in charge of a geological survey of New York. In 1904 he became the state geologist and paleontologist, the director of the state museum, and director of the science division of the education department. He was named the first president of the Paleontological Society in 1908, served as vice president of the Geological Society of America in 1909, and was elected president of that organization in 1916.

John M. Clarke passed away on May 29, 1925, in Albany at the age of 68. During his lengthy career he published 452 titles, of which approximately 300 treatedsubjects relted to geology or paleontology. Three genera and 42 species were named after him. He was awarded six honorary degrees and received offers from four universities to chair their departments of geology.

Chalkboard Champion and Revolutionary War Hero Timothy Bloodworth

Chalkboard champions have been as much a part of American life as any other hero since the very beginnings of our country's history. One such historical figure was North Carolina educator, patriot, and statesman Timothy Bloodworth.

Timothy was born in New Hanover County, North Carolina, in 1736. He was named after his father, who had migrated to North Carolina from Virginia in the early 1700's. As a young man, Timothy had little formal education, but he pursued a variety of careers.  Although  he spent most of his adulthood before the Revolutionary War as a teacher, he also farmed, kept a tavern, operated a ferry, practiced medicine, and preached occasionally. He also worked as a wheelwright and watchmaker, but he was probably best known as a blacksmith.

The talented educator eventually emerged as a leader in the movement for independence from Great Britain. When war broke out in 1776, Timothy began making weapons such as muskets and bayonets for the Continental Army. According to legend, he even saw combat as a sniper in fighting around Wilmington, North Carolina. In 1778 and 1779, he served as a member of the state legislature for North Carolina.

After the war ended, he held a number of political posts until serving as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1786. Timothy was elected a member of the House of Representatives of the First United States Congress, a position he held from 1790 to 1791. After his tenure in the House ended, he returned to the North Carolina State Legislature. In 1794, Timothy was elected to the United States Senate, where he served from 1795 to 1801. From then until 1807, this chalkboard champion served as collector of customs in Wilmington.

Timothy Bloodworth passed away on August 24, 1814. During World War II, the liberty ship SS Timothy Bloodworth was named in his honor.