Author Archives: Terry Lee Marzell
During Black History Month, we honor Tennessee’s Mary Scales
In celebrating Black History Month, we pay homage to Mary Scales, an exemplary math teacher from Tennessee. (Photo credit: Murfreesboro Post.)
In celebrating Black History Month, we pay homage to our country’s many talented and dedicated African American educators. One of these is Mary Scales, an exemplary math teacher from Tennessee.
Mary was born on Sept. 24, 1928, in Columbus, Georgia, although she spent her girlhood in Chicago, Illinois. As a young woman, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Knoxville College in Knoxville, Tennessee. She earned her Master’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). She also completed postgraduate work at both Peabody College and Vanderbilt University,
After she earned her degrees, Mary taught in Murfreesboro at both Bradley Middle School and Boxwood Middle School, where she taught mathematics. She also served the school district as an administrator. Impressed with her abilities in the classroom, she was offered a position in the Education Department at her alma mater, MTSU, where she worked first as an Associate Professor, and then as a full professor. In fact, she was the first African American to join the faculty at that institution of higher learning. Later, Mary would work there as the Dean of Continuing Education and as a math specialist with the Tennessee State Department of Education.
In addition to her work as an educator, Mary dedicated herself to her community as both a member of Murfreesboro City School Board and the Murfreesboro City Council. She was the first Black woman to serve on the Council. This hardworking educator had a reputation for being a strong advocate for Civil Rights.
For her tireless work in the classroom on behalf of children, Mary earned many accolades. She was inducted into the Tennessee Teachers Hall of Fame at MTSU in 2001. In 2005, a Murfreesboro elementary school was named in honor of both Mary and her husband, Robert.
Sadly, Mary passed away on Oct. 6, 2013, following a long battle with cancer. She was 85 years old. To learn more about this Chalkboard Champion, see her obituary published by MTSU.
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NY Social Studies teacher Andrew Beiter inducted into NTHF
Andrew Beiter, a social studies teacher from Springville, New York, has been inducted into the 2020 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame. Photo credit: www.academyfor humanrights.org
I enjoy sharing stories about exemplary educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Andrew Beiter, a social studies teacher from Springville, New York. Andrew is one of five educators who have been inducted into the 2020 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame (NTHF).
Andrew teaches eighth grade American history at Springville Middle School in Springville, a suburb of Buffalo, New York. Previously, Andrew taught in the Panama School District and at St. Bonaventure School in West Seneca. His career as an educator has spanned 25 years.
This amazing educator has garnered the respect of his colleagues, his students, and their parents. “I’m truly grateful for the impact Andrew has had on our school and students,” says Shanda DuClon, Principal of Springville Middle School. “He has successfully led several school-wide lessons where tolerance is the topic. He is an advocate for our students, and through his support, Andrew has created a safe environment where students can truly be themselves without judgment,” the principal continued. Fellow educator Megan Felt agrees. “His impact reaches beyond the boundaries of his classroom to include educators and students around the world,” Megan asserts. “His colleagues and students speak of his love and passion for teaching.”
In addition to his duties in the classroom, Andrew is also the Director of the Summer Institute for Human Rights of Buffalo, a Regional Education Coordinator for the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. He is the Board President for the Educators’ Institute for Human Rights, an organization designed to provide education to teachers about the Holocaust and human rights in former conflict zones, including Rwanda, Bosnia, and Cambodia. He is also a Teacher Fellow for the Lowell Milken Center and a consultant for the Speak Truth to Power program at the Robert F. Kennedy Center. And as if all that were not enough, he is active in New York State United Teachers and the National Council for the Social Studies.
Andrew earned his Bachelor’s degree in Political Philosophy from Michigan State University in 1987 and his Master’s in Education from State University of New York, Fredonia in 1998.
Well done, Andrew.
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Pennsylvania’s Laura Towne: She taught emancipated slaves
Chalkboard Champion Laura Towne from Pennsylvania opened a school for emancipated slaves as the War Between the States raged around her. Photo credit: Beufort County Library.
American history is full of Chalkboard Champions who risked life and limb for their students. One of these educators is Laura Towne, who taught newly-emancipated African Americans, even though the Civil War raged around her.
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1825, Laura was raised in Philadelphia, where she moved in socially progressive circles. She was formally educated as both a homeopathic physician and as a school teacher. She was also a dedicated abolitionist.
During the Civil War, Laura was one of the first Northern women to go south to work with newly-freed slaves. She traveled to St. Helena Island in Port Royal, South Carolina, where she founded the first school for freed slaves, even though the War Between the States continued to rage all around her.
Laura Towne was practical, independent, down-to-earth, and strong-willed. She readily entered into the life of St. Helena Island, where she began her work attending to the medical needs of the freed slaves. In June, 1862, Laura gave up her medical practice, and together with Ellen Murray, her life-long friend and fellow teacher, opened the first school for freed slaves. Laura named her institution the Penn School. Nine adult students enrolled in the school, which operated out of the back room of an abandoned plantation house. Unlike most schools established for emancipated slaves, Laura’s school offered a rigorous curriculum, which was modeled on the schools of New England.
Laura spent forty years running her school and grew to love the life she had established in Port Royal. She and Ellen eventually adopted several African American children and raised them as their own. Upon her death in 1901, Laura bequeathed the Penn School to the historically Black College Hampton Institute, at which time the school began operating as the Penn Normal, Industrial, and Agricultural School.
Laura Towne: A true Chalkboard Champion. To learn more about her, click on this link to read her biography published by the Social Welfare History Project sponsored by Virginia Commonwealth University.
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During Black History Month, we honor Alaska’s Selwyn Carrol
During Black History Month, we recognize Chalkboard Champion and veteran Selwyn Carrol, a middle school teacher and politician from Alaska. (Photo credit: Ian C. Hartmen)
I love to honor our nation’s African American educators all year round, but especially during Black History Month. Today I’d like to recognize Selwyn Carrol, a teacher and politician from Alaska.
Selwyn was born on Oct. 31, 1928, in Altamonte Springs, Florida, although he was raised in the state’s Jacksonville area. As a youngster, he attended Stanton College Preparatory School in Jacksonville. As a young man, he served his country in the US Army. He was sent to Korea where he saw combat. Through the military he ended up in Alaska. There he attended the University of Alaska where he earned his Bachelor’s degree.
Before becoming an educator, Selwyn gained experience in a number of jobs. He worked as a social worker for the Alaska Department of Public Welfare. He was hired by the Alaska Department of Corrections as a supervisor of the youth detention center in the Alaska state jail. He also worked for the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District as an attendance officer. It was in Fairbanks that he accepted his first teaching position as a middle school teacher.
In 1972, Selwyn was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives on the Republican ticket. He represented District 17, which served Fairbanks. He maintained this position from 1972 to 1974. While there, he served as the Chair of the House Community and Regional Affairs Committee, and he also served on the Labor and Management Committee.
Upon his retirement, Selwyn relocated to Hampton County, South Carolina. There he served as the county auditor. This Chalkboard Champion passed away on Dec. 21, 2010. He was 82 years old. He was interred at Beaufort National Cemetery in Beaufort, South Carolina.
To learn more about Selwyn Carrol, read his obituary published by The Augusta Chronicle.
