Category Archives: Education

Former teacher Joyce Kulhawik establishes successful career in television

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Former high school English teacher Joyce Kulhawik establishes a successful career in television.

There are many fine educators who establish careers in television. One of these is Joyce Kulhawik, a former English teacher from Vermont who also earned fame as a television personality in Boston, Massachusetts.

Joyce was born in 1954 in Connecticut. At a very young age, Joyce was exposed to arts. As a child, she played piano, sang, and played organ in her parish church. After her high school graduation, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in English and Secondary Education from Simmons College. That was in 1974. As one of the top two graduating seniors, she garnered a Crown Zellerbach Award and a full fellowship from the University of Vermont. She enrolled there, and in 1977 she completed the requirements for a Master’s degree in English Education.

Once she earned her degrees, Joyce inaugurated her career as a teacher at Brookline High School. She taught there from 1976 to 1978. She also taught at the Boston Architectural Center from 1977 to 1979.

Joyce has covered local and national events from Boston and Broadway to Hollywood. She has reported live from the Oscars, the Emmys and the Grammys. Nationally, the former teacher co-hosted the syndicated movie-review show Hot Ticket with Leonard Maltin, and she was a continuing host on Roger Ebert and the Movies. For her work in the entertainment industry, Joyce was inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2007. In addition, she earned the N.E. Emmy’s Governor’s Award. 

A three-time cancer survivor, Joyce testified before Congress on the 20th anniversary of the National Cancer Act. Since 1983 she has chaired the American Cancer Society’s largest spring fundraising campaign, serves on the ACS advisory board, and continues to help raise millions of dollars for the ACS first “Hope Lodge” in Boston. For this work, the ACS honored Joyce with their national bronze medal.

Currently Joyce serves as the president of the Boston Theater Critics Association, a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics, and a member of the Boston Online Film Critics Association. In addition, she performs as a guest narrator with the Boston Pops, the New England Philharmonic, Boston Musica Viva, the Boston Civic Symphony, and the Concord  Orchestra.

To read more about Joyce, see this link at Wayland Student Press Network.

 

US Mint to produce coin that honors teacher Christa McAuliffe

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The US Mint will produce a commemorative coin to honor high school social studies teacher Christa McAuliffe, the first Teacher in Space.

Chalkboard champion and first Teacher in Space Christa McAuliffe will soon be honored with a $1 silver coin to be produced by the US Mint. Christa was a social studies teacher from Concord, New Hampshire. In 1985, she was selected from over 11,000 teacher applicants nationwide to participate in NASA’s Teacher in Space program. Tragically, she perished on January 28, 1986, when the space shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds after liftoff. The accident was the result of a faulty rocket booster. Six other astronauts were also lost in the disaster.

In 2021, the US Mint will issue 350,000 coins to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the Challenger explosion. To authorize the minting of the coin, the US House of Representatives passed the Christa McAuliffe Commemorative Coin Act of 2019 on Thursday, September 19. The US Senate approved the bill last July. Next, the legislation will go to the White House for the president’s signature.

The Secretary of the US Treasury will have the final say in the appearance of the coin. Currently, plans are to place the name and likeness of the intrepid educator on one side, and an image that depicts Christa’s work as an educator on the other side. The public will be able to buy the coins at a price that will include the $1 face value of the coin, plus the cost of their design and issue, and a $10 surcharge per coin. The money raised through the surcharge will benefit an organization known as For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST). FIRST organizes robotics competitions to encourage students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

“Some of you may recall that Christa’s motto as the Teacher in Space was ‘I touch the future, I teach,’ and she was looking forward with such excitement, not only to leave the bounds of Earth, but to return to Earth and engage with her students, to share her experience, to share the excitement and adventure of going into a new frontier that we call space,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD). The lawmaker personally knew Christa. He met her when her husband served as his law clerk in the late 1970s.

To read more, see the article at space.com.

Science teacher Mary Appelhof, the “Worm Woman”

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High school science teacher Mary Appelhof, known as “Worm Woman,” earned recognition for developing the practice of vermicomposting.

Many talented classroom teachers become recognized specialists in their specific field of study. One of these educators is Mary Arlene Appelhof, a science teacher from Michigan, who became well-known for developing the practice of vermicomposting.

Mary was born on June 11, 1936, in Detroit, Michigan. As a young woman, she attended Berea High School in Berea, Ohio, where she graduated in 1954. Following her high school graduation, she enrolled in Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biology in 1958. The following year she earned her Master’s degree in Biology there. She later earned a Master’s degree in Education and completed advanced courses in biology.

After earning her degrees, Mary taught science courses at Kalamazoo Central High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She also taught at Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, Michigan.

In the early 1970s, Mary experimented with “vermicomposting,” a system using worms to recycle food waste into fertilizer. To spread the practice, she developed lessons for her students and home gardeners. She also talked to garden clubs, and exhibited at harvest festivals, barter fairs, and energy expos. She became a vocal advocate for protecting the environment when she served on solid waste planning committees. These efforts led others to nickname her the “Worm Woman.” For her work, the innovative teacher garnered a grant from the National Science Foundation to videotape her experiments. With footage developed with the money from the grant, she produced an educational video entitled Wormania! You can learn more about the practice of vermicomposing at Mary’s website, Worm Woman.com.

This amazing educator passed away on May 4, 2005. She was 68 years old. She is interred in Benzonia Township Cemetery. In 2009, the National Women’s History Project honored Mary Appelhof as a Women’s History Month Honoree.

Teacher Jim Freeman carries the day (literally!) for wheelchair-bound student

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Kentucky teacher Jim Freeman of Tully Elementary School volunteered to carry student Ryan Neighbors on his back so she could participate in the class field trip to Falls of the Ohio.

I love to share stories about teachers who go the extra mile for students, and here is one story that is truly heartwarmng. Teacher Jim Freeman of Tully Elementary School in Louisville, Kentucky, wanted to ensure that student Ryan Neighbors could participate in a field trip with her class. The group was planning to go to Falls of the Ohio National Wildlife Conservation Park just over the state line in Clarksville, Indiana. The thing is, Ryan is confined to a wheelchair, and isn’t able to do the hiking and climbing that the field trip requires. Ryan was born with spina bifida, a birth defect where the spine and spinal cord do not form properly.

When students visit the conservation park, they hike to 390-year-old fossil beds. view museum exhibits that depict human history of the Louisville area, including pre-settlement, early settlement, and the history of southern Indiana. In order to make it possible for Ryan to participate, the teacher volunteered to carry the ten-year-old in a carrier on his back for the entire excursion.

Ryan’s mother, Shelly King, cannot praise the teacher enough. “I was blown away,” she expressed. “Mr. Freeman, he’s not her teacher but he teaches in the classroom next door. That’s what I think makes it so heartfelt, because he’s not her teacher. He didn’t have to do it,” she said. The mother also said she was grateful that Freeman was so compassionate and willing to help.

The student also appreciated the ability to participate in the field trip. “I liked it so much,” Ryan expressed. She said she learned a great deal on the trip. “We got to see the fossils and the bones … and I thought it was really fun,” the student declared.

To read more about this story, view this online article published by People.com.

Hawaii’s Sarah King garners a prestigious Milken Award

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Students all over our country are so fortunate to have so many talented educators staffing our public schools. These hardworking individuals work tirelessly to develop innovative and effective instructional programs, and they genuinely care about their students. One of these is Sarah King, a first grade teacher from Hawaii. She garnered a prestigious 2018-2019 Milken Educator Award, only one of 33 teachers in the country to do so.

Sarah hails from Ala Wai Elementary School in Honolulu. As the Title I coordinator there, Sara develops school-wide support systems that allow all the kids to thrive and reach their full potential. She works with her colleagues to achieve these goals with tiered support systems and enrichment programs.

Sarah says she has always dreamed of becoming a teacher. The highlight of her day is helping students learn how to read. “The students make it all worth it,” Sarah asserts. “When you see them light up when they finally figure out something or are proud of themselves and knowing you had a hand in that, (it) is awesome,” she said.

Sarah attended the University of Hawaii, Manoa, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2008. She earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum Studies there in 2012.

The Milken Educator Awards have been described by Teacher Magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to the $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 2,700 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education. Sarah is one of up to 40 educators, and the only one from Hawaii, to receive the Milken Educator Award for the 2018-2019 year. To learn more, click on Milken Educator Awards.