Utah’s Lily Yuriko Havey: Teacher, artist, award-winning author

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Former Utah English teacher Lily Yuriko Havey is also an artist and an award-winning author. Photo credit: Lily Yuriko Havey

During Asian American/Pacific Islander Month, I’m devoting some of my blog posts to educators of Asian descent. One of these was Lily Yuriko Havey, a high school English teacher who was incarcerated in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. She is also an artist and an award-winning author.

Lily was born in Los Angeles in 1932. She was only nine years old when the Empire of Japan attacked Peal Harbor. Shortly after that, President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066 resulted in 120,000 West Coat residents of Japanese descent being removed from their homes and relocated to internment camps throughout the interior. Lily and her family were among those who were relocated. Lily’s family was sent first to the Santa Anita Assembly Center, and then to the Amache Relocation Center in Prowers County, southwestern Colorado.

Once the US won World War II, Lily and her family moved to Salt Lake City, Utah.  Later, Lily garnered a scholarship to study at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. She earned her Bachelor’s degree there. She then returned to Utah, where she earned her Master’s degree in Fine Arts from the University of Utah.

Once she earned her degrees, Lily inaugurated her career as an educator, teaching high school English, creative writing, and humanities in Utah public schools. Her career as an educator spanned 13 years.

After Lily left the classroom in the 1970’s, she decided to develop her artistic talents. She experimented with creating stained-glass suncatchers. This endeavor led her to establish a stained-glass artwork business which she maintained for over 30 years. In the 1980s, Lily expanded her artistic endeavors. She began to paint watercolors, and quickly recognized her paintings were helpful in overcoming the post-traumatic stress disorder she suffered as a child when she was an internee. When she displayed the watercolors in galleries and art shows, she was asked to share descriptions of the paintings. These descriptions led her to write her memoir, GAsa Gasa Girl Goes to Camp: A Nisei Youth behind a World War II Fence. The volume was published in June, 2014, by the University of Utah Press. The efforts earned high praise. In 2015, Lily garnered the Evans Biography Award, presented for a book written during the previous calendar year. The award is administered by Utah State University.

To order a copy of Lily’s book, simply click on this link to amazon: Gasa Gasa Girl Goes to Camp:  A Nisei Youth behind a World War II Fence.

Montana’s Catherine Matthews named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year

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Pre-school Special Education teacher Catherine Matthews of Bozeman, Montana, has been named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the year.  Photo credit: Montana State Office of Public Instruction

Many fine classroom teachers have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Catherine Matthews, an early childhood Special Education teacher from Bozeman, Montana. She has been named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year.

Catherine’s career as an educator spans 26 years. For the past 20 of them, she has taught Pre-K Special Education at Hyalite Elementary School in Bozeman.

In her classroom, Catherin works diligently to build an inclusive environment that celebrates every child’s talents and encourages a love for life-long learning. She collaborates with families, colleagues, and the community as a whole to foster a classroom culture of acceptance and diversity in which all her students feel welcome. “They respond to her, they love her, and you can feel the love when you walk in her classroom,” asserts Hyalite Principal Heather Chvojka. “If you’ve ever seen Catherine teach before, it’s like watching a magic show. The things that she’s able to do with these kids is amazing,” Chvokja continues. “Even when she’s walking through the school, her love and care for the families is contagious,” Chvojka says.

Catherine extends opportunities for learning beyond the classroom. She runs an organic farm, and she is also a beekeeper. Through these activities, she hopes to create additional learning activities and provide local, farm-to-table, healthy food options. Her husband, Jason Matthews, is an advocate for wildlands and animals, and together the couple runs an animal sanctuary.

Catherine earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Montana State University, Bozeman. She earned her Master’s degree in Special Education from Montana State University, Billings.

To learn more about Catherine Matthews, see this article published about her by the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.

 

Acclaimed author Crystal Hana Kim is a Teach for America alumnus

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Acclaimed author Crystal Hana Kim, a Teach for America alumnus, has taught writing at the elementary, high school, and college levels. Photo credit: Crystal Hana Kim

There are many excellent classroom teachers who have earned recognition in fields outside of the classroom. One of these is Crystal Kim, a published novelist who has taught writing at the elementary, high school, and college levels.

Kim was born in Queens, New York, in 1987, the daughter of immigrates from South Korea. As a young child, she often returned to South Korea every summer to spend time with extended family. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in 2009 and Master’s degree in Fine Arts in 014, both from Columbia University, and a Master’s in Education from Hunter College in 2011.

Crystal came to the classroom through the Teach for America (TFA) program. TFA is a nonprofit organization who says their mission is to “enlist, develop, and mobilize as many as possible of our nation’s most promising future leaders to grow and strengthen the movement for educational equity and excellence.” The organization accomplishes this by recruiting college graduates to serve as teachers in public schools. Those selected commit to teaching for at least two years in a public or public charter K–12 school in one of the 52 low-income communities that the organization serves.

Crystal published her first novel, If You Leave Me, in 2018. The book was named a Best Book of 2018 by The Washington Post, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Literary Hub, and the ALA Booklist. In fact, her work was so well-received that she was named a National Book Foundation’s 5 Under 35 Honoree in 2022. The honor recognizes debut fiction writers whose work is predicted to leave a lasting impression on the literary landscape. Crystal was also named a 2021 Jerome Hill Artist Finalist and a 2017 PEN America/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize winner. She has received scholarships from Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Sewanee Writers’ Conference, Jentel, and Hedgebrook. Her work has been published in Elle Magazine, The Paris Review, Guernica, and elsewhere. Additionally, she is a contributing editor at Apogee Journal.

Dr. Erick Hueck inducted into 20223 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame

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Florida science teacher Dr. Erick Hueck has just been inducted into the 2023 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame. Photo credit: NTHF

I enjoy sharing stories about exemplary educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Dr. Erick Hueck, a science teacher from Miami, Florida. Erick is one of five educators nationwide who have been inducted into the 2023 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame (NTHF).

Erick’s career as an educator spans 34 years. Currently, he teaches Chemistry and Advanced Placement Chemistry to freshmen through seniors at Miami Senior High School in Miami. In previous years, he  taught Biology, Earth Space, Physical Science, and General Science there. In addition, for 32 years the honored teacher has served as the advisor for his school’s chapter of the National Beta Honor Society. In addition to his work in the classroom, Erick serves as the President of the Dade County Science Teachers’ Association.

As a result of years of professional experience, Erick can offer some sage advice for his colleagues. ​“You must have passion at the core of your intent,” he asserts, “understand that there will be good days and bad days, continue to learn and evolve; take care of yourself and listen to the voice inside your head, you are only as good as you feel.”

Erick’s induction in the NTHF is not the only recognition he has earned. In 2013 he was named the Outstanding Teacher of the Year by the Florida Association of Science Teachers. The next year, he garnered the Phebe and Zephaniah Swift More Teaching Award from Amherst College. In 2022, Erick was named the NEA California Casualty Award for Teaching Excellence, and that same year he earned the Yale Educator Award.

A 1983 graduate of Columbine High School in Colorado, Erick continued his education at the University of Southern Mississippi, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Chemistry in 1987. He earned his Master’s degree in Science Education from the University of Miami in 1990, and his PHD in Educational Leadership from Nova Southeastern University in 2009.

The National Teachers Hall of Fame was founded in 1989 in Emporia, Kansas, to honor outstanding educators through a recognition program and museum. Nominees must be certificated public or non-public school teachers, active or retired, with at least 20 years of experience in teaching grades preK-12. Since the inaugural induction ceremonies in 1992, 145 educators from 40 states and the District of Columbia have been inducted. To learn more about the program, click on this link to the NTHF.