Category Archives: Education

Matilda Mossman: The health and Pe teacher who became an award-winning basketball coach

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Former high school health and physical education teacher Matilda Mossman became an award-winning university basketball coach prior to her retirement in 2021. Photo credit: Tulsa University

Many outstanding college coaches launched their careers as physical education teachers in one of America’s public schools. One of these is Matilda Mossman, an award-winning high school basketball coach who also served as the former Head Basketball Coach for the University of Tulsa in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Matilda was born on Aug. 7, 1956 in Campbellsville, Kentucky. After her graduation from high school, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Physical education in 1970 and her Master’s degree in Education in 1980, both from Western Kentucky.located in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

After earning her degrees, Matilda launched her career as a health and physical education teacher at Normal Community High School in Normal, Illinois. She also served as the girls basketball coach there. She worked at the school from 1994 to 2001.

The next year, Matilda relocated to Norman Oklahoma, where she served as the assistant girls basketball coach at Norman North High School. That year, her team completed the season with a 22-4 record and advanced to the Class 6A state semi-finals.

The next year, Matilda was named the Head Basketball Coach at Norman High. She served in that role from 2002 to 2011. During those years, her teams logged an overall record of 191-53 for a winning percentage of nearly 80%. During her tenure, Matilda’s teams qualified for the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Athletic Association (OSSAA) Class 6A State Tournament in the last eight of her nine seasons, and they won eight straight regional championships. In fact, Matilda led Norman High to the state title in 2005, and runner-up in 2010.  For her efforts, she was named the Conference Coach of the Year three times, while earning Regional and District Coach of the Year honors twice.

In 2011, Matilda was appointed Head Basketball Coach at the University of Tulsa, where she served ten seasons. She took over a five-win team and in just her second year won a conference championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. She retired from coaching in 2021.

“My entire life has evolved around being a basketball coach. And I have had the time of my life!” Matilda declared at the time of her retirement. “Mark Twain once said, ‘Find a job you enjoy doing and you will never work a day in your life.’ That is certainly what I have done,” she concluded.

Educator and politician Mary Helen Garcia of New Mexico

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Former educator Mary Helen Garcia also served in the New Mexico House of Representatives. Photo credit: New Mexico Legislature

There are many examples of fine classroom teachers who also become successful politicians. One of these is Mary Helen Garcia, an elementary school teacher and principal from New Mexico, who also served in her state’s House of Representatives.

Mary Helen was born on July 14, 1937, in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in 1960 and her Master’s degree in 1976, both from New Mexico University.

Mary Helen worked as a teacher first at Gadsden Public Schools, where she was employed from 1960 to 1961. From 1967 to 1992 she taught in Las Cruces Public Schools. She served as the Director of Instruction for Las Cruces schools from 1993 to 1999 to the present. She also served as an elementary school principal in Las Cruces from 1993 to 1999. She is now retired from the teaching profession.

In 1996, this hardworking educator was elected on the Democratic ticket to serve in her state’s House of Representatives. She represented District 34 there from 1997 to 2015. While in the House, Mary Helen was the Chairwoman for the Committee on Voters and Elections; a member of the Appropriations and Finance Committee; and a member of the Committees for Education and Business and Industry. She has also served as the Chair of the New Mexico District Democratic Party from 1997 to the present time.

In addition to her professional and political responsibilities, Mary Helen is a member of the National Education Association, the International Association of Reading, the Association of Curriculum and Instruction, the Dona Ana Arts Council, and the Pan American Round Table.

To learn more about this amazing educator, see her profile on VoteSmart.

Chalkboard Champion Jean Kirk Kuczka of Missouri protected her students with her life

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Chalkboard Champion Jean Kirk Kucska, a secondary school teacher from St. Louis, Missouri, gave her life to protect her students from a gunman. (Photo credit; MEAAW)

In the history of our country, there have been times when an educator has been so dedicated to his or her students that they may even lay down their life to protect them. One of these is Jean Kirk Kuczka, a secondary school teacher from St. Louis, Missouri.

Jean was born in St. Louis on March 7, 1961. As a high school student, she discovered a passion for education while teaching swimming lessons at a local YMCA. Once she graduated from Lindbergh High School, she enrolled at Missouri State University on a field hockey scholarship. There she earned a degree in both physical education and health. As a college student, Jean was a part of the 1979 Missouri State University National Championship Field Hockey team. In 2010, she was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.

Once she earned her degrees, Jean taught health and physical education courses at Central Visual & Performing Arts High School. She also coached the school’s Cross Country team. She had been working there since 2008. She loved her job, and she loved her students. In fact, she once said, “I cannot imagine myself in any other career but teaching.” Her career as an educator led to numerous awards, including a national honor recognizing her school’s accomplishments in health and wellness under her leadership.

On Oct. 24, 2022, a former student came back to the school with a gun. The intrepid teacher shielded students from the gunman, telling her kids to jump out the windows to escape. Jean gave her life protecting her students. She was buried at Resurrection Cemetery in south St. Louis.

Following her passing, this Chalkboard Champion was memorialized in the National Memorial of Fallen Educators established at the National Teachers Hall of Fame in Emporia, Kansas.

MN teacher Tracy Byrd named his state’s 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year

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High school  Language Arts teacher Tracy Byrd of Minneapolis, Minnesota, has been named his state’s 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year. (Photo credit: Elevate Teaching)

I am always excited to share the story of an outstanding educator who has been honored for their work in the classroom. Today I share the story of Tracy Byrd, a high school teacher from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has been named his state’s 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year, reports the Council of Chief State School Officers.

Tracy teaches courses in Language Arts to ninth graders at Washburn High School, his own high school alma mater. There he has also served as the Head Coach for the school’s Track and Field team since 2022, and he has also coached football as the Defensive Coordinator. He has been teaching at the school since 2017. Previously, Tracy worked at Wayzata School District in Minneapolis, where he inaugurated his career in public schools as a hall supervisor. That’s when he discovered that he had a natural gift for commenting with young people.

The honored educator admits that school was not his favorite place as a young student. Education was not his original career choice. Instead, he worked for investment banks. Today, though, Tracy sees the classroom as his true calling. He declares his goal is to provide fair access to education for all students, something Byrd found lacking in his own experience, is his teaching. “True access to education can change the trajectory of a student,” Tracy asserts. “It could be the spark that ignites the flame for a young student into a field they didn’t know existed,” he continues. “To me, that is the purpose of education: Not to give them something they already know, but to show them something new and authentic so they can learn and grow,” he concludes.

Tracy earned his Bachelors degree in English Language and Literature from Metro State University in 2014. He completed the requirements for his teaching credential there in 2017.

 

Iowa’s Agnes Samuelson: The teacher that worked for better education for all students

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Iowa teacher Agnes Samuelson worked to improve education for all students. (Photo credit: Greater Shenandoah Historical Society

Many purpose-driven educators work to improve society as a whole. This is true of Agnes Samuelson, a teacher from Iowa who dedicated herself to improving education for all students.

Agnes was born on April 14, 1888, in Shenandoah, Iowa. Her parents were immigrants from Sweden. Agnes was the eldest of their seven children. By the time she graduated from high school in 1904, she had already determined to become a teacher. She came to this decision as a result of the many hours she spent helping Swedish immigrants in her community learn American culture and the English language.

After graduation, Agnes enrolled in a one-year program at Western Normal College in Shenandoah. In 1906, she inaugurated her career as an educator at a one-room country school house in Page County, two miles from Shenandoah. Over the next two years, the neophyte teacher instructed in several school in southwest Iowa. Eventually she landed at a high school in Silver City, Iowa, where she was both a teacher and the principal.

By 1913, Agnes had completed numerous courses at the University of Nebraska. That year, the ambitious educator was named Superintendent of Public Schools in Yorktown, Iowa. Two years late she was selected  to the position of Page County Superintendent of Schools. During her tenure, she updated the curriculum in rural schools, ensured that all schools in the country were equipped with textbooks, and established a program of professional development for the teachers in her district.

In 1923, Agnes accepted a position as a professor of extension courses at Iowa State Teachers College. She also pursued graduate courses at the State University of Iowa. There she earned a Bachelor’s degree in 1925 and her Master’s degree in 1928.

Eager to be of even further service, Agnes ran for State Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1926. She won! She served 12 years in the position. During those years, she campaigned for the adoption of a school-aid formula that provided equal education for all Iowa children, regardless of the property wealth in their home district.

In 1935, Agnes decided to shift gears. She left public office to become the Executive Secretary of the Iowa State Teachers Association, in 1945, she became the president of the National Education Association. To fulfill her responsibilities in this role, she relocated to Washington, DC.

For her lifetime of work improving the educational experiences of students in her state, Agnes was inducted posthumously into the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame in 1976. In addition, an elementary school in Des Moines has been named in her honor. In addition, she was a charter member of Delta Kappa Gamma (DKG), an organization for educators that was formed in 1929 to address issues of equality for women professionals in education.

This amazing Chalkboard Champion retired in 1952. In retirement, she authored several books and a school manual. She passed away on May 12, 1963, following a one-year battle with cancer. She was 76 years old.

To read more about Agnes Samuelson, follow this link to the Biographical Dictionary of Iowa.