Category Archives: Education

Educator Jaime Escalante taught students to “Stand and Deliver”

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Mathematics educator Jaime Escalante taught his students to “Stand and Deliver.” Photo credit: UCLA Digital Library

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. He was the teacher portrayed by Edward James Olmos in the 1988 hit 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. He eventually led them to unparalleled success on the extremely difficult Advanced Placement Calculus exam.

In researching Jaime’s life story 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, he earned a degree in mathematics and a teaching credential in Bolivia. Jaime 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, Jaime 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 this celebrated educator’s life can be found in the biographical book Jaime Escalante: The Best Teacher in America by Jay Matthews. For a condensed version of Jaime Escalante’s life, check out chapter 12 my volume, Chalkboard Champions. Either way, you’ll find his story compelling and inspiring.

Old-time singing cowboy Skeeter Hubbert became a CA music teacher

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Many times talented entertainers find their way into classrooms, influencing impressionable young minds to pursue similar interests in the performing arts. One of these was Ernest “Skeeter” Hubbert, a singing cowboy who became a popular music educator in Riverside, California.

Ernest was born on July 10, 1924, in Little Rock, Arkansas. He was musically gifted as a child, and when he grew up, he studied at the Kansas City Conservatory of Music and the Sorbonne in France. Eventually he enrolled at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, where he earned his Master’s degree in Music.

In the mid-1930s, Ernest landed a position in the band of Stuart Hamblen, and he also played rhythm guitar and trumpet on commercial recordings with Texas Jim Lewis. When WWII erupted, Ernest formed his own group of Western musicians which he dubbed Skeeter Hubert and his Cowboys. The Standard Transcriptions Company created approximately 40 recording with this group. These recording received widespread national airplay, earning Ernest a reputation for being the most popular singing cowboy on the air. In addition to performances as a musician, he also worked as an extra in many Western movies.

After the war was won, Ernest earned a living teaching music and directing choral groups in the Los Angeles area. Eventually he relocated to the city of Riverside, located in Southern California’s Inland Empire. There he accepted positions as a music teacher, first at Chemawa Junior High School, and then at Matthew Gage Junior High School. Next he taught music at Alcott Elementary School for two years before returning to Gage. He also directed civic choral groups in the area. Eventually, the former singing cowboy retired from the teaching profession.

Ernest passed away on Oct. 12, 1989. He was 75 years old. But the impact he made on young student musicians lives on to this day. To read more about Ernest “Skeeter” Hubbert, click on this link to an article written about him from his former student, Steve Lech, published on Dec. 18, 2022, in the Press Enterprise.

Teacher Mona Lee Brock: “The Angel on the End of the Line”

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Teacher and guidance counselor Mona Lee Brock of Oklahoma. She was often called “The Angel on the End of the Line.” Photo credit: Oklahoma Farm Report

I love to share stories about teachers who go above and beyond, not only for their students, but also for their families. One of these is Mona Lee Brock from Oklahoma, who dedicated her considerable energy to helping suicidal farmers in her home state. In fact, she was often called “The Angel on the End of the Line.”

Mona was born in Madill, Oklahoma, on Jan. 1, 1932. She was one of eight children. As a youngster, she attended Kingston High School. As a young woman, she attended Southeastern State College. There she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Education in 1964. She completed the requirements for her Master’s degree in Education from the University of Oklahoma in 1967.

Once she earned her degrees, Mona accepted a position as a teacher in the Moore Public School System in Oklahoma. She also served as a guidance counselor and the school’s principal.

During the 1980’s, farmers in her home state and elsewhere in the country were hit hard by droughts, high production costs, low prices, bad loans, and a Russian embargo on grains. The struggle to survive these conditions caused many farmers to commit suicide. To combat this tragedy, Mona personally manned a suicide prevention hotline, which she ran 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That’s how she earned her nickname, “The Angel on the End of the Line.” Her work was noticed by musician Willie Nelson, who contributed money to her cause. He was also motivated to launch his Farm Aid campaign, which raised over $50 million to help struggling farmers.

Sadly, this amazing Chalkboard Champion succumbed to congestive heart failure on March 19, 2019. You can learn more about Mona Lee Brock through her obituary at the New York Times.

PA educator Dorothy Sumners Rush inducted into Germantown Historical Society’s Hall of Fame

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Dorothy Sumners Rush, seen here at right, with her daughter Jocelyn Rush and her son, Bruce Rush., in 2015. Photo credit: The Philadelphia Tribune.

There are many fine educators who have earned honor for their work in the field of education. One of these is Dorothy Sumners Rush of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was inducted into the Germantown Historical Society’s Hall of Fame.

Dorothy was born on November 2, 1932 in Trenton, New Jersey. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Science from New Jersey State Teachers College in Trenton, New Jersey, in 1953. She earned her Master’s degree in Administration from Temple University in Philadelphia in 1970.

Once she earned her degrees, Dorothy inaugurated her career as an educator when she accepted a position as a junior high school teacher of mathematics and science in Trenton, New Jersey in 1953.

In 1957, Dorothy relocated to Pennsylvania, where she worked at Emlen Elementary School in Germantown, for 15 years. She then spent 19 years as Vice Principal of Ada Lewis Middle School. As an administrator at Ada Lewis, she taught algebra in a before-school program, nurtured partnerships with businesses that resulted in tutoring for students, and helped students start their own company: Ada Lewis Enterprises, which marketed products such as student-made pillows, cutting boards, and cookies, an enterprise that gave students real-life lessons. She retired in 1991 and then was appointed to serve on the School Board two years later, eventually becoming the Board’s Vice President.

In addition to her induction into the Germantown Historical Society’s Hall of Fame, Dorothy received recognition for her service from the National Adoption Center in Philadelphia in 1985, She also earned honors for her community service from the Philadelphia City Council in Philadelphia in 1994. She was also the first ever recipient of the Polemarch’s Legacy Award from the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., Philadelphia Alumni Chapter, in 2015. The same year, Dorothy was named a Women of Moxie by the City of Philadelphia.

The Germantown Hall of Fame in Pennsylvania celebrates the achievements of individuals who have made significant contributions to the cultural history and the community of Germantown. The  honorees embody the skills and talents to the civic, educational, and artistic fabric of the community. Created in 1994 by the Germantown Historical Society operated until 2007. After a hiatus, Historic Germantown reinstated the program in 2018.

Kamehameha schools preserve Native Hawaiian culture

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Kamehameha Schools, first established in 1887, serve the important function of preserving Native Hawaiian culture, history, and language.  Photo credit: Kamehameha Schools

While conducting research for my book Chalkboard Champions, I learned a great deal about numerous types of schools that I had never heard about in my thirty-odd years as an educator. Industrial schools, emancipation schools, farm schools, normal schools, specialist schools. Where were all these terms when I went through student teaching? One type of school I learned about that I found particularly intriguing is the Kamehameha School located in the beautiful state of Hawaii.

Kamehameha Schools were first established in 1887 at the bequest of Bernice Bishop, also known as Princess Pauahi, a member of the Hawaiian royal family when the state was still a territory. Princess Pauahi and her beloved husband, an American named Charles Reed Bishop, had no children of their own, and so when she passed away in 1882 at the age of 52, she directed that her vast estate should be used to benefit and educate underprivileged Native Hawaiian children. Two schools were built: one for boys and one for girls. Eventually the two schools were merged to form a co-ed school, now located on a six-hundred-acre campus on the main island of Oahu overlooking Honolulu Harbor. Other branches of the school have been built on neighboring Hawaiian islands.
Kamehameha Schools serve the important function of preserving Native Hawaiian culture, history, and language. One of the ways this is done is through the annual choral competition known as the Kamehameha Song Contest, where traditional Hawaiian songs and dances as well as new compositions in the genre are performed by the students. This is a wonderful tradition that goes back 45 years.
When I think of Chalkboard Champions, my first thought is of teachers, of course, but individuals such as Princess Pauahi who support schools financially and with their volunteer hours are also heroes to our students!

Read more about Kamehameha Schools in my book Chalkboard Champions, available on amazon.