Category Archives: Education

Gail Haines: Former teacher and Michigan State Rep

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Former teacher and member of the Michigan State House of Representatives Gail Haines

Many excellent classroom teachers have also served as competent politicians. A great example of this is Gail Haines, a public school teacher who also served in the Michigan State House of Representatives.

Gail was born in 1951 in New York State. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at the State University of New York in 1973 and her Master’s in Education at Nazareth College in 1975. She taught in the public school system for 12 years, and she also coached middle school and high school. In addition, Gail worked as a computer educator for a medical center.

Gail gained experience in the political arena as a former member of the Lake Angelus City Council, as an executive committee member for the Oakland County Republican Party, and as a precinct delegate. From 2008 to 2014, Gail was elected as a Republican to represent the 43rd District in the Michigan State House of Representatives. While in office, she served on the committees for Families, Children, and Seniors; Military and Veterans Affairs; and Homeland Security. She also served as the Assistant Majority Whip and the Chair of the Health Policy Committee.

While on the Health Policy Committee, Gail garnered the Distinguished Service Award from the Michigan Business & Professional Association and the Michigan Food and Beverage Association. The organizations cited Gail’s distinguished and dedicated service on behalf of small businesses, diversity issues, and concerns involving food safety.

As for education issues, the former educator worked towards restructuring public school teacher health care and benefits and the attempt to qualify her state for the federal “Race to the Top” school improvement program.

Gail’s affiliations since she left office include membership on the Advisory Board of the College of Arts and Sciences at Oakland University, membership on the Art Gallery Board of Oakland University, and serving on the Dean’s Advisory Board at the University of Michigan-Flint.

Colorado’s Sarah Szymanski earns coveted Milken Award

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There are many talented and dedicated educators that devote themselves to their students in every state of the United States, and today we spotlight one from Colorado: Sarah Szymanski, an elementary school teacher from Colorado Springs who has garnered a coveted 2018-2019 Milken Educator Award. Sarah teaches second grade at Soaring Eagles Elementary School. The school, described as a gifted and talented magnet school, has named both a National Blue Ribbon School and a National Title I Distinguished School.

Sarah earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Pennsylvania State University in 2008. She reveals that she was inspired to become an educator after watching her mother, a now-retired sixth-grade teacher, develop lasting relationships with her students. “I realized that as a teacher you can effect change on a daily basis and become a lifelong figure in the lives of your students,” she says. “I don’t think there’s a better feeling than knowing that every day, you have the opportunity to create a long-lasting difference in the life of a child.”

Sarah has a reputation for being a natural leader, with an extraordinary ability to advocate for both students and colleagues. She serves as a grade level leader, and has been a part of many of her school’s and district’s committees, including Math Collaborators, Effectiveness and Results, and the Building Leadership team. She has presented at school and district inservices on literacy models and their implementation. Many visitors to Soaring Eagles visit Sarah’s classroom to observe her classroom management, community-building, and instruction skills.

The Milken Educator Awards, which Teacher magazine has described as the “Oscars of Teaching,” has been honoring exceptional educators over three decades. Milken Educators are selected in early to mid-career for what they have achieved to date, and for the promise of what they will accomplish as they continue through their careers. 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 top teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who are dedicated to strengthening education.

Middle school teacher Julie Blaha elected Minnesota State Auditor

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Middle school teacher Julie Blaha elected Minnesota State Auditor.

Throughout our history there have been many examples of excellent classroom teachers that have gone on to successful careers in politics. One of these is Julie Blaha, a middle school math teacher from Ramsey, Minnesota, who was elected her state’s official auditor.

Julie earned her Bachelor’s degree from St. Cloud State University in 1992. She earned her Master’s degree in Education from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota in 2007.

Once she completed her college education, Julie accepted a position as a middle school math teacher for the Anoka-Hennepin Independent School District #11. From 1999-2010 she taught seventh grade math, and from 2014-2016 she taught sixth grade math.

As a teacher, Julie became a member of the Governor’s School Finance Task Force, she advocated for statewide anti-bullying legislation to protect LGBTQ students, and she worked with parents to increase school funding. During these years, she also served as the president of the Anoka-Hennepin Education Minnesota and as the Secretary-Treasurer of the Minnesota AFL-CIO.

In 2018, Julie was elected on the Democratic ticket to the office of Minnesota State Auditor. She was sworn in to office on January 7, 2019. Minnesota is one of only 24 states that elect an auditor. The position focuses on the oversight of about $20 billion spent by local governments yearly, and involves auditing, reviewing, investigating, reporting, and educating.

Today, she is affiliated with the Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless; the Minnesota chapter of the National Organization for Women; the Minnesota Safe Schools Technical Advisory Committee; the Minnesota School Finance Task Force; and the City of Ramsey Economic Development Authority.

Pennsylvania teacher, businessman, and politician William Croll

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Teacher, businessman, and politician William Martin Croll of Pennsylvania

There are many examples of classroom teachers who have achieved success in other arenas, such as politics and business. William Croll, a teacher from Pennsylvania, was successful at both.

William Croll was born April 9, 1866, in Upper Macungie Township, Pennsylvania. As a young man, he attended Keystone State Normal School located in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. Keystone State, now known as Kutztown University, was established as a teacher-training college in 1864, as a result of Pennsylvania’s 1857 Normal School Act. The legislation was passed to create a set of uniform standards for educators and a pool of well-trained teachers for the state’s school system. After his attendance at Keystone, William later earned his degree from Eastman Business College in Poughkeepsie, New York.

For a time, William taught school. Then he moved to Maxatawny,Pennsylvania where he was involved in the business of general merchandising. Later he moved to Reading, Pennsylvania, and by 1897 he was engaged in the retail clothing business. After he developed an interest in banking, William became the treasurer of Berks County, Pennsylvania, where he served from 1909 to 1912. William was also a US veteran, having served as an officer in the US Navy during World War I, from 1913 to 1918.

In 1912, William jumped into the political arena when he was named a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. He served in this capacity again in 1920. He was elected to the 68th Congress on the Democratic ticket, representing the 14th District from 1923 to 1925. Once his term was completed, William returned to his merchandising business.

William Croll, accomplished teacher, businessman, and politician, passed away in Reading, Pennsylvania on October 21, 1929, at the age of 63. He is interred at Laureldale Cemetery in Laureldale, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Annie Webb Blanton: Founder of the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society

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Dr.  Annie Webb Blanton, the principal founder of the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society.

Because of my induction into the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society last weekend, I have been thinking a great deal about the organization’s principal founder, Texas educator Dr. Annie Webb Blanton. I have written about her before, but due to her remarkable achievements, I thought I would revisit the topc.

Annie was born on August 19, 1870, in Houston, one of seven children of Thomas Lindsay and Eugenia (Webb) Blanton. Her twin sister, Fannie, died as a child. As a young girl, Annie attended school in Houston and La Grange. After graduating from La Grange High School in 1886, she taught in a rural school in Fayette County. When her father died in 1888, Annie relocated  to Austin, where she taught in both elementary and secondary schools. As she worked to support herself, Annie continued her studies at the University of Texas, where she graduated in 1899.

Shortly after her graduation from college, Annie was selected to serve on the English faculty of North Texas State Normal College, now known as the University of North Texas. She served in this capacity from 1901 to 1918. While there, she became active in the Texas State Teachers’ Association. She earned a reputation for being a strong believer in equal rights for women. During this time she also wrote a series of grammar textbooks. In 1916, Annie was elected president of the teachers’ union, the first woman to occupy the position.

In 1917 Texas suffragists found a strong supporter  in Governor William P. Hobby, so they threw their considerable energy into his 1918 bid for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. In that election, the suffragists also encouraged Annie to run for the office of state superintendent of public instruction. The campaign was a bitter one, with false accusations made against the veteran teacher, but in the 1918 primary, Texas women were allowed to vote for the first time, so Annie was elected by a wide margin. Her victory in the general election in November made her the first woman in Texas elected to statewide office.

During her tenure as state superintendent, Annie inaugurated a system of free textbooks, revised teacher certification laws, raised teachers’ salaries, and made improvements to rural education. Annie was re-elected in November of 1920, when voters also passed the Better Schools Amendment, which she had proposed as a means of removing constitutional limitations on tax rates for local school districts. She served as state superintendent through 1922.

When  her term ended, Annie  returned to the University of Texas, where she received her Master’s degree in 1923. She taught in the UT Education Department until 1926, then took a leave of absence to earn her Ph.D from Cornell University. After returning to the University of Texas in 1927, she remained a professor of education there for the rest of her life.

During her lifetime, Annie published a number of books about education, including Review Outline and Exercises in English Grammar (1903), A Handbook of Information as to Education in Texas (1922), Advanced English Grammar (1928), and The Child of the Texas One-Teacher School (1936). In 1929 she founded the Delta Kappa Gamma society, an honorary society for women teachers, which in 1988 had an international membership of 162,000. She also was active in national educational groups and served as a vice president in the National Education Association in 1917, 1919, and 1921.

Annie Blanton never married, and she had no children of her own. She died in Austin on October 2, 1945, and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery. Public schools are named for her in Austin, Dallas, and Odessa, and a women’s dormitory at the University of Texas at Austin has also been named after her.

Annie Blanton: a true chalkboard champion.