Former First Lady Laura Bush also served her community as a teacher and a school librarian in her home state of Texas.

Laura Bush was just seven years old when she informed her parents that she wanted to be a teacher. And she never wavered from her decision. Before she became the nation’s First Lady, she served her community as a teacher and school librarian.

Like many teachers, Laura felt a calling to the teaching profession. As a youngster, she enjoyed lining up her dolls in the pretend classroom she established in her bedroom. There she and her childhood playmates would play school for hours on end.

Laura earned her degrees from Southern Methodist University, where she majored in Elementary Education and completed her student teaching semester. She inaugurated her career as an educator when she accepted a position as a third grade teacher in the Dallas Public Schools system.  At the tend of the school year, Laura moved to Houston, where she taught second grade at John F. Kennedy Elementary School.

After three years as a classroom teacher, Laura returned to college to earn her Master’s degree in Library Science. This done, she accepted a position as a children’s librarian at a public library in Houston, a job which suited her well. But she missed working in schools.

The following year she became a school librarian, working at a school with an inner-city population. Apparently, the students there were tough. One of Laura’s former colleagues described the future First Lady. She said, She was friendly and very loiving but very firm. She had her rules…and you followed them.”

Laura has said that she believes that children need dedicated teaches in their lives. She has often said, “Teachers have a more profound impact on our society and culture than any other profession.”

To read more about Laura Bush and her career as an educator, check out this book, From Classroom to White House: The President and First Ladies as Students and Teachers, by James McMurtry Longo, available on amazon.