Category Archives: Education

NY teacher Elsbeth Kroeber actively countered prejudice during “Nazi years”

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Early 20th-century science teacher and administrator Elsbeth Kroeber authored a textbook that actively countered class and race prejudice during the “Nazi years.” Photo Credit: Midwood High School Elsbeth

I always enjoy sharing stories about excellent educators who have earned acclaim for their work in the classroom. One of these is Elise Elsbeth Kroeber, an early 20th-century science teacher who authored a general biology curriculum that during her time was widely-used throughout New York Public Schools.

Elise, who preferred to be called Elsbeth, was born Nov. 28, 1882, in Manhattan, New York. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences in 1903 from Columbia University. She also studied at Barnard. After earning her degree, Elsbeth worked for many years as a biology teacher.

While teaching, Elsbeth saw the need to vastly update the curriculum for general biology courses, known as the Kroeber Curriculum. In addition to her work in the classroom, Elsbeth completed a great deal of technical writing and editing. She co-authored the biology textbook Adventures of Living Things, which was widely used in high school biology classes. When it was published in 1938, the textbook was viewed as an innovative approach to biology. The volume was one of the first in a wave of biology textbooks published during the “Nazi years” that actively countered class and race prejudice and sought to dispel a popular and institutional approval for the scientifically erroneous and immoral theory of eugenics.

Before her retirement in 1954, Elsbeth worked as an Assistant Principal at Midwood High School in Brooklyn. In what were supposed to be her Golden Years, she served as a supervisor and board member for eh Schools Volunteer Program of the Pubic Education Association, a program providing tutors for disadvantaged students in New York City. She also developed and supervised professional development inservice for teachers who wished to become department chairs.

In addition to her professional work, this Chalkboard Champion was a member of the American Biological Institute and the National Association of Biology Teachers, that she speaks German conversationally, that she has a secondary specialty in microbiology and immunology, that her salary is between $7,000-$8,000/year and that in addition to teaching, she does technical writing or editing.

Elise Elsbeth Kroeber passed away in Dec. 3, 1969. She was 87 years old. Since her passing, the New York Biology Teachers Association awards a graduating New York City senior with its Elsbeth Kroeber Memorial Award in her honor.

Many thanks to US veterans who are also teachers!

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Veterans Day is a special day set aside to honor our United States Veterans. But the call to serve the community is something that many military members don’t lose once they are discharged. That’s one of the reasons why so many veterans gravitate towards the teaching professions once their military service is complete. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, about 2% of teachers in our nation’s classrooms are military veterans.

Military veterans have many personality traits that make them particularly suited for a career in teaching. When entering the teaching profession, veterans are typically older and have had more varied life experiences. In addition, veterans can bring a wealth of leadership qualities to the classroom. They have an understanding of the importance of discipline, an appreciation of the value of education, the ability to adapt, and the capacity to work well, even under highly stressful circumstances, are some of the qualities that veterans can bring to the classroom. Also, very often veterans possess the ability to persevere, which is a trait that is especially needed in a profession that has a high turnover rate.

Another valuable characteristic that many veterans possess is their potential to connect with students from ethnically diverse neighborhoods or lower-economic backgrounds, because many veterans themselves come from such circumstances. They understand from firsthand experience how challenging some school environments can be, and therefore may be more invested in helping to make a difference in such school systems. Furthermore, veterans have been especially trained to accomplish tasks collaboratively.

For these reasons, and many more, veterans are invaluable as Chalkboard Champions. So, today and every day, let’s celebrate our nation’s veterans who are also teachers!

Louise Archer taught in a segregated, rural one-room schoolhouse

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North Carolina teacher Louise Archer taught core academic subjects and life skills in a segregated rural one-room schoolhouse. Photo Credit: Louise Archer Elementary School

Our nation’s students are indeed fortunate to have so many dedicated and hardworking educators teaching in our public schools. One of these was Louise Archer, an elementary school teacher from North Carolina.

Louise was born on Oct. 23, 1893, in Fayetteville, North Carolina. As a young woman, she attended Livingston College, a historically Black Christian college located in Salisbury, North Carolina. She married Romulus Archer, Jr., in 1915. The couple relocated to Washington, DC, in 1922, and Louise continued her education at Morgan State College, a historically Black college in nearby Baltimore, Maryland. There she earned her Bachelor’s degree.

Louise inaugurated her career as an educator at the Oak Grove School in Southampton, Virginia, in a one-room schoolhouse for African American children. She taught there two years. In 1924, she became both the teacher and the principal for another one-room segregated school, the Vienna Colored School, located in Vienna, Virginia. The camped, unheated facility was the first in Fairfax County to educate African American students in fifth through seventh grades. For many, this was the only education they would receive.

The first boys who were the first to arrive at the rural school each morning chopped wood for the fire to keep the schoolhouse warm. Students brought water each day from a nearby spring and stored it in buckets in one corner of the classroom. Louise taught her students using tattered, secondhand textbooks, but she supplemented these with lessons in music and poetry. In addition, she taught her students life skills such as cooking, sewing, embroidery, cabinet-making, and rug-hooking.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Louise established a 4-H Club for African Americans in Fairfax County. Through this club, her students planted a garden and raised vegetables to add to a soup that was cooked each day on a potbelly stove.

By all accounts Louise was devoted to her young charges. For example, if they needed help getting to school, she drove them to the schoolhouse herself. She invited students to her home in Washington, DC, so they could experience a big city, and she let students use her home address when they enrolled in a DC high school so they could continue their education without paying expensive tuition fees.

Later in her career, Louise organized a Parent Teacher Association to raise money to buy much-needed classroom supplies. The group also raised money to construct a new schoolhouse, this one with three rooms, which opened in 1939. In 1941, she spearheaded fundraising efforts to pay for electric lighting, a music teacher, kitchen supplies, and bus transportation for the students.

Sadly, Louise suffered a heart attack and passed on April 1, 1948. In 1950, her school was renamed the Louise Archer Elementary School in her honor.

NYC PE teacher Reyes Andon garners a 2025 Golden Apple Award

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Elementary school teacher Reyes Andon has garnered a 2025 Golden Apple Award from the New York City Department of Education. Photo credit: Reyes Andon

There are many excellent teachers who work in New York City schools. One of them is Reyes Andon, a physical education teacher who has earned a Golden Apple Award from the New York City Department of Education.

Reyes teaches students up to grade 5 at PS 376, an elementary public school located in Brooklyn. There he uses sports as a vehicle to inspire learning, leadership, and community. Reyes strives to make his classroom instruction inclusive and culturally responsive. But the key to his success as an educator, says Reyes, is that he promotes peer leadership by promoting student agency and responsibility through meaningful roles the coach, assistant coach, and equipment manager.

“Beyond the classroom, I serve as a national trainer with the US Soccer Foundation, facilitating programs like Soccer for Success, the Coach-Mentor Blueprint, and Just Ball to help educators and youth leaders across the country harness sport for positive development,” says Reyes. “I also collaborate with NYCFC City in the Community, leading initiatives that engage families and expand opportunities for underserved youth,” he continued. In addition, Reyes has organized several community partnerships and after-school and weekend programs that address access gaps in physical activity and organized sports for families facing economic barriers.

Reyes is one of ten New York City teachers who garnered a Big Apple Award this year. The honor recognizes teachers who demonstrate excellence across four key areas: inspiring students to reach their full potential, modeling equitable learning with high expectations, affirming students’ unique identities and gifts, and enriching school communities through meaningful partnerships with families and community organizations. In addition to his Big Apple, which came with a $25,000 check for Reyes to use to enhance the physical education program at his school, the Chalkboard Champion was featured on an episode of the NBC Today Show.

Kansas Business Ed teacher Elizabeth Anstine named 2025 State Teacher of the Year

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Business Education teacher Elizabeth Anstine of Kansas has been named her state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Kansas State Collegian

It is always my pleasure to shine a spotlight on an outstanding educator who works in a public school. One of these is Elizabeth Anstine of Overland Park, Kansas. She has been named her state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year.

Elizabeth teaches courses in business, finance, marketing, and entrepreneurship at Leavenworth High School in Leavenworth. In addition, she serves as an advisor for Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA). In this role, she cultivates an inclusive program that consistently produces internationally ranked students. She also sponsors the Interact club to foster global understanding and she is heavily involved in her school’s Building Leadership Team, developing strategies to enhance student achievement. She has worked at the school for the past 12 years.

Before accepting her position as a Business Education teacher, Elizabeth spent nearly two decades in senior corporate marketing roles. During these years, she volunteered with Junior Achievement in Kansas City’s inner-city schools. Following her corporate career, she dedicated herself to volunteering in the Olathe, Kansas, School District, where her children were enrolled. There she assisted in Blue Ribbon applications, initiated a district-wide Battle of the Books competition, established mentoring programs, served in a leadership role in the booster club, and participated in school site councils. She also worked as a substitute teacher and AVID tutor.

As someone who entered the teaching profession later than many educators, Elizabeth says she wants to continue mentoring young teachers and those who think they have something to contribute to the classroom. “I didn’t have that dream until I was 40,” she once remarked. “I want them to know they’ll be rewarded when they set out to do great things. I just want to be an example that anyone can rise to the occasion,” she continued.

Elizabeth earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Education from Fort Hays State university and her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Kansas.