Category Archives: Education

Teacher and principal Nelson Bartram was also a Civil War Veteran

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Teacher and principal Nelson Bartram fought on the Union side during the Civil War. Photo Credit: Library of Congress

Many hardworking educators have served their country well during times of war. One of these was Nelson Bartram, a teacher and principal who fought during the Civil War on the Union side.

Nelson was born in Westport, New York, on January 7, 1832. While still a child his family relocated to Manhattan. At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Nelson was working as a teacher managing a night school on Nineteenth Street. At the same time, he was employed as a principal at the public school on West Twenty Fourth Street.

When the War Between the States broke out, Nelson mustered into service with the Seventeenth Infantry as a captain, Company B, on May 22, 1861. He was promoted to major of the regiment in December of that year, and lieutenant colonel in May, 1862. He mustered out of service with the regiment in June, 1863. He was then appointed lieutenant colonel of the new 15th New York Cavalry. In September, 1863, he resigned that post to accept a commission as colonel of the 20th US Colored Troops (USCT) organized on Riker’s Island in February, 1864. While serving in the military, Nelson was a witness to all the major engagements that the Army of the Potomac fought in until December 1863. This Chalkboard Hero mustered out with 20th USCT in October, 1865.

After the war, Nelson went to work as a clerk in the New York Customs House. That was in 1870. He also served as the Deputy Collector there until his passing on December 25, 1886, in New York City. On Sept. 26, 1900, a bronze statue was erected in his honor at Port Chester, New York.

To learn more about this heroic teacher and US veteran, see this article published by Adventures in History.

Making Waves with Colorado’s 2024 State Teacher of the Year

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A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about educator Jessica May. She was named the 2024 Colorado State Teacher of the Year. Today I stumbled across this video of her, and I thought it was so inspiring that I wanted to highlight this amazing teacher again. Jessica teaches courses in family and consumer sciences at Turner Middle School in Berthoud, Colorado. Her curriculum is focused not only on cooking and sewing, but also on self-care, social emotional learning, life skills (including personal finances), child development, and school to career. Here is the video:

Henrietta Szold: Teacher, activist, founder of Hadassah

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Teacher and activist Henrietta Szold at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, circa 1920. Photo Credit: Jewish Museum of Maryland

I love to tell stories about exceptional educators who have made significant contributions to the world community. One of these is Henrietta Szold, a Baltimore teacher and activist who worked tirelessly with an organization that helped save thousands of Jewish children from the Nazis.

Henrietta was born on December 21, 1860, in Baltimore, Maryland, the eldest of eight daughters. Her mother was Sophie (Scharr) Szold, and her father was Benjamin Szold, a local respected rabbi. As a young girl, Henrietta attended Western Female High School, where she graduated in 1877.

After her high school graduation, Henrietta taught courses in French, German, botany, and mathematics at both Miss Adam’s School and Mrs. McCulloch’s School at Glencoe. She taught in these schools for 15 years. When Henrietta saw a need to educate newly-arrived immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe, she urged the Hebrew Literary Society to sponsor a program to teach them English. As a result, the first evening adult classes in Baltimore were established. This was the beginning of adult education in the city, and the program became a model for adult education in other American cities. Henrietta also taught courses in history and Bible studies for adults at Oheb Shalom Religious School.

In addition to her classroom duties, Henrietta served as her father’s literary secretary for many years. She became the secretary of the editorial board of the Jewish Publication Society (JPS), a position she held until 1916. She translated works, wrote articles, edited manuscripts, and oversaw the publication schedule. In 1899 she was instrumental in producing the first American Jewish Year Book, of which she was sole editor from 1904 to 1908. She also collaborated on the compilation of the Jewish Encyclopedia.

Henrietta is probably best known, however, for founding the international volunteer organization known as Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America. With the Nazis rise to power in Germany, Henrietta recognized the extreme danger the party presented to European Jews. In 1932, a plan called Youth Aliyah was developed to send German Jewish Adolescents to Palestine to complete their education. Youth Aliyah was able to save between 22,000 and 30,000 Jewish youths from World War II death camps.

Sadly, Henrietta passed away from complications from pneumonia on February 13, 1945, in Jerusalem, Israel, at the age of 84. She is buried in the Jewish Cemetery on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Following her death, Israel issued a coin and a stamp in her memory, the first American woman to be featured on Israeli currency. Inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2007, Henrietta Szold is truly a Chalkboard Champion.

You can read more about this remarkable teacher in the Jewish Virtual Library.org.

CA teacher and poet Elmo Kelley guides his students in writing their own poetry

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Elmo Kelley, an elementary school teacher from Fontana, California, is a published poet. He guides his young students in exploring and publishing their own poetry. Photo Credit: Fontana Unified School District

There are many talented teachers who bring their artistic talents into the classroom to benefit their young students. One of these is elementary school teacher Elmo Kelley from Fontana in Southern California. He is the author of two books of poems, and he uses his expertise as a published poet to guide and inspire his young students towards writing their own volumes of poetry.

Elmo is a California native who is the son of two teachers. His wife is also an educator. He has been writing poetry ever since he discovered his passion for the art form as a college student 30 years ago.

Elmo published his first book of poems, entitled Traveling Through My Mind, Volume 1, in 2022. He published his second book, Traveling Through My Mind, Volume 2, in June, 2024. He is also a member and the moderator of the Poet Tree Press page on Facebook, and he is a member of the Invisible Poets page, also on Facebook, where he posts new poems on a regular basis. In addition, he occasionally posts work on a private group website frequented by teachers who work in the Fontana Unified School District.

Elmo teaches second graders at Cypress Elementary School in Fontana. He has been teaching there for the past 27 years. This year, he guided his students in writing poems and completing drawings about their favorite food which they titled My Favorite Foods. The finished volume was made available to Elmo’s students and their families.

“We had a lot of fun with that book,” declared Elmo. “Writing poetry is a new concept for second graders,” he continued, “so my advice to them was just to be very descriptive and write like no one really knows what the subject is about.” The experience proved to be a valuable learning experience for the neophyte poets. “Some of the kids were advanced and some struggled, but everyone was represented in the book,” Elmo concluded.

Illinois music educator Grace Jeong earns Award of Excellence

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Music educator Grace Jeong of Chicago, Illinois, has received a 2024 Award of Excellence fro the Illinois State Board of Education. Photo Credit: Illinois State Board of Education

It is always my pleasure to share the news that an exceptional educator has earned accolades for their work with young people. Today, I share the news that Chicago music educator Grace Jeong has received a 2024 Award of Excellence from the Illinois State Board of Education.

The Award of Excellence is given to teachers who have greatly improved their school community by advocating for positive change and have shared opportunities for improvement with colleagues. These educators have become an integral member of their departments and larger school culture.

Grace teaches at Whitney M. Young Magnet High School. Under her direction, her choir students have performed at prestigious venues, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall, the Auditorium Theater, and The Art Institute of Chicago. In competitions, the school’s choirs consistently earn Superior and Honors Superior ratings in both Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and Illinois High School Association (IHSA) choral festivals. The groups have also performed in other states, including Tennessee and Florida, and overseas in Germany, South Korea, and China.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Grace frequently works as a judge and a clinician in the greater Chicago area, and she has served as the CPS All-City High School Assistant Director. In addition to her recognition from the Illinois State Board of Education, she was selected by the National Endowment for Humanities to participate in the Mozart Institute in Vienna, Austria.

Grace earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She earned her Master’s degree from the University of Southern California. She earned a second Master’s degree in Choral Education from VanderCook College of Music.