Each One Teach One

I expect that each of us has at least one teacher who made a positive impact on our lives. I fondly remember learning from Bruce, Mrs. Brooks, Mr. Watson, Mrs. Steadman, and Miss Holmes, to name just a few. And though I didn't know her, I am grateful to my grandmother, Willie Beatrice Jones Neal, who was also teacher (and taught my dad in the classroom and at home.)

National Teacher Day, celebrated on Tuesday in the first full week in May, is "a day for honoring teachers and recognizing the lasting contributions they make to our lives." (www.nea.org) As a former Arkansas teacher myself and as the beneficiary of the work of numerous Arkansas teachers, I am pleased to note that the first work to initiate National Teacher Day was done by an Arkansas teacher in 1944. In the mid 1950s, Mattie May Whyte Woodridge (1909-1999) was principal of North End Elementary School in the Arkansas Delta. Mrs. Woodridge founded National Teacher Day and corresponded with Eleanor Rossevelt in the process.

On this day, take the time to thank a teacher who helped you. Maybe she taught a class, maybe he was a mentor, maybe she taught you a life lesson. None of us makes it alone; someone taught us what we know and, in addition to being grateful, we have a responsibility to teach those around us. Consider these ways you can do this:

* Model the behavior you expect from others. As Mahatma Ghandi said "Be the change you want to see in the world." We can all do this.

* Share what you know. We all are blessed with talents. Identify yours and teach someone else.

* Remember that we're all lifelong learners (or we should be). Perhaps you can teach an adult to read or be a mentor.

To all the teachers out there, I salute you! Thank you for the good and valuable work you do!