Category Archives: Education

Pennsylvania’s Laura Towne: She taught emancipated slaves

Posted on by
Laura Towne

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.

Florida educator Connie Lane Lewis earns honors from DKG

Posted on by

Florida educator Connie Lane Lewis has been named a Key Women Educator by the Alpha Kappa Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International. Photo credit: DKG Alpha Kappa Chapter

It is always my pleasure to write about an outstanding educator who has made significant contributions to her learning community. Today, I write about Connie Lane Lewis, an outstanding teacher from Tallahassee, Florida. She has been named a Key Women Educator by the Alpha Kappa Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International (DKG).

DKG ia a prestigious professional organization that promotes the professional success of women educators. The organization works to improve professional preparation, to recognize women’s work in the teaching profession, and to fund scholarships for teachers who need support to improve their professional skills.

Connie Lane Lewis worked much of her career as a professional educator at Florida University High School (FSUS), a laboratory school sponsored by Florida State University located in Tallahassee. The school is often referred to as Florida High, although the facility actually serves students in grades kindergarten through 12th grade. She taught there from 1971 to 2004.

At FSUS Connie taught dance, archery, rhythmic exercise, gymnastics, tumbling, and computer science to students at both the elementary and secondary levels. In addition, she served as the high school’s coach for track and field and cheerleading. Furthermore, she served as a choreographer for middle school and high school musicals at FSUS. In addition to her work in the classroom, Connie served as the Membership Chair for the Florida State Association for Health, Physical Education, and Dance. She retired in 2004 after 35 years of teaching.

In addition to the recognition she has earned from DKG, Connie earned a Florida State Service Award in 1980. She was named District Teacher of the Year at FSUS in 1988. She also earned a Florida Retrofit for Technology Grant in the amount of $200,000, and she was named a finalist for an Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award in 2001.

Even in retirement, Connie is very active. Currently she serves as the Communication Chair and Webmaster of DKG’s Alpha Kappa Chapter. In addition to DKG, Connie belongs to the Beta Beta Chapter of Phi Delta Kappa and serves as the organization’s newsletter editor.

Connie earned her Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She earned her Master’s degree in Physical Education and Dance from Florida State University. She also earned a Certificate in Computer Science.

To learn more about the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, click on this link: DKG.

NYC dance teacher Veronica Cheeseboro garners Big Apple Award

Posted on by

High school dance teacher Veronica Cheeseboro has garnered a 20024-2025 Big Apple Award from the New York City Department of Education. Photo credit: The Riverdale Press

I always get excited when I can share the story of an exceptional teacher who has earned accolades for her work with young people in our nation’s public schools. Today I share the story of Veronica Cheeseboro, a high school performing arts teacher from New York City. She has garnered a 2024-2025 Big Apple Award from New York City Department of Education.

Veronica teaches dance at DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx. She has led the dance program there for six years. During those years, Veronica has worked diligently to partner her dance program with Ailey Arts in Education, Merce Cunningham Trust, and Ballet Hispanico Community Arts Partnership. In addition, Veronica serves as the coach for the school’s Step Team and she advises the campus Dance Club.
In her classroom, Veronica includes curriculum covering wellness for freshmen students. The curriculum covers injury prevention and ways to stretch. Her sophomores learn about nutrition, and her juniors and seniors learn anatomy through a study of kinesiology, learning how the body moves as well as the function of muscles, bones, and ligaments as they support dance moves. 

Veronica has also fulfilled a variety of leadership roles within the dance community. She’s facilitated multiple city-wide professional development workshops in hip hop dance for Rutgers University, Broadway Dance Center, and the Office of Arts & Special Projects sponsored by the NYC Department of Education.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Veronica is an active dancer and choreographer. She has performed as a member of NYC-based Contemporary Dance Company: Modarts Dance Collective as a professional dancer for the past four years.

Veronica earned her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts with an Emphasis in Dance at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, in 2016. She attended the prestigious school on an academic scholarship. She earned her Master’s degree in Dance Education with a K-12 certification from Rutgers University in 2018.

To learn more about Veronica Cheeseboro, click on the following link to visit her website.

Julian McPhee: High school vocational education teacher and veteran

Posted on by
Julian McPhee

Julian McPhee, the high school vocational education teacher who became president of Cal Poly universities Photo credit: Cal Poly University

There are many stories of talented high school teachers who work their way up into positions in universities. This is true of Julian McPhee, a high school vocational education teacher who eventually became the president of the California Polytechnic University system.

Julian was born in San Francisco on February 7, 1896. His parents were immigrants from Canada. After his graduation from high school, Julian enrolled at University of California at Berkeley, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture. While still working on his undergraduate degree, Julian inaugurated his career as an educator by teaching a course in agricultural education at Pomona High School in Pomona, a suburb of Los Angeles.

During the waning months of World War I, Julian enlisted in the US Navy, where he served as an ensign. While in the service, he worked as an instructor at the naval port guard and as an aide in Naval Intelligence. In 1918, at the conclusion of the Great War, Julian was given an honorable discharge.

After the war, Julian returned to the San Francisco area, where he accepted a position as a teacher of agriculture at Gilroy High School in Gilroy, Santa Clara County, California. During his many years as a high school educator, Julian strongly emphasized vocational education, particularly in the fields of agriculture. An advocate of hands-on learning, he formed clubs for agriculture and mechanics in each one of Gilroy’s public schools.

In 1928, Julian completed the requirements for his Master’s degree in Agricultural Education through the University of California at Los Angeles. Between 1926 and 1944, he worked as the chief of the State Bureau of Agricultural Education. In this capacity, he formed the California state headquarters of Future Farmers of America.

In 1933, Julian was selected president of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. There he converted the struggling school from a two-year technical school to a full-fledged four-year university in the CSU system.

When World War II broke out, Julian served as the director of California’s War Food Production Training Program. Later he served as acting chief of the Bureau of Readjustment Education, the Assistant Executive Officer of the State Board of Vocational Education, and the director of Vocational Education for the State of California. He also oversaw the founding of newly-built Cal Poly Pomona.

By 1966, Julian could claim 33 years as the president of the Cal Poly system. But because of deteriorating health, he decided to retire. Sadly, this amazing educator passed away of colon cancer on November 10, 1967. He was 71 years old.