VT English teacher Leanne Harple elected to her state’s House of Reps
High school English teacher Leanne Harple has been elected to serve in her state’s House of Representatives. Photo credit: Vermont House of Representatives
Many fine public school teachers also represent their communities in political bodies. this is true of Leanne Harple, a high school English teacher from Vermont who is currently serving in the Vermont House of Representatives.
Leanne was born and raised on a Christmas tree farm in Glover in rural Northeast Kingdom. Once she graduated from Lake Region High School, she attended Vermont’s Johnson State College, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing and Theater Arts and her Master’s degree in Education. She currently lives in Glover with her husband and two young children.
For more than a decade Leanne has taught English courses at Hazen Union School in Hardwick, Vermont. She has taught there for 11 years. She formerly served roles as the President and the Vice-President of the Orleans Southwest Education Association. In the past, she has served her community as a Select Board Member and she currently serves as a Justice of the Peace.
In Nov. 2024, Leanne was elected on the Democratic ticket to a seat in her state’s House of Representatives representing Orleans-District 4, which includes Albany, Craftsbury, Glover, and Greensboro.. She was sworn in on Jan., 2025, and her current term expires on Jan. 6, 2027. In her capacity as a state representative, Leanne has declared she intends to focus on such issues as affordable housing, climate action, education, health care, and mental health support, emphasizing the particular challenges faced by rural communities in Vermont. While serving, Leanne says she hopes to “address the many systemic problems that prevent kids from being ready to learn when they come to school, including childhood poverty, hunger, and anxiety.”
To read more about Leanne Harple, click on this link to an interview with her published online by the vtdigger.
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Reading aloud to students…
Great gifts and inspirational reading for Winter Break
Season’s Greetings!
I’m sure busy educators all over the country are busy wrapping up their current instructional programs, creating holiday lessons and programs, working on finals, and calculating semester grades. So much to do before the onset of Winter Break. At the same time, these dedicated professionals are decorating their classrooms, homes, and yards for the season, while also addressing holiday cards, baking cookies, and shopping for gifts. So much to do to get ready for Christmas, too.
Speaking of Christmas shopping, I have a suggestion. Why not buy an inspirational book for the teacher in your family, your child’s special teacher, or that favorite co-worker at your school? Or you could indulge yourself, and stock up on something inspirational to read during your much-needed Winter Break. I have two splendid titles to suggest: Chalkboard Champions: Twelve Remarkable Teachers who Educated America’s Disenfranchised Students (available here) and Chalkboard Heroes: Twelve Courageous Teachers and Their Deeds of Valor (available here), each one available in print or in e-book formats and reasonably priced.
Enjoy!
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Civil Rights activist Fannie Richards first Black teacher in Detroit
Civil Rights activist Fannie Richards of Detroit, Michigan, is recognized as the first African American school teacher in her city. Photo credit: Black Then
Throughout our country, many excellent educators logged “firsts” in their community. One of these was Fannie Richards. She is recognized as the first African American school teacher in Detroit, Michigan.
Fannie was born on Oct. 1, 1840, in Fredericksburg, Virginia, the child of free persons of color. When she was just a child, her family moved to Toronto, Canada. She enrolled in Canadian public schools, and once she graduated, she continued her studies at Toronto Normal School and then in Germany, where she worked with education expert Wilhelm Frobel as he developed the innovative new concept of kindergartens.
Once she returned to the United States, Fannie landed in Detroit. Because of her exceptional scholastic record, she was able to secure a position as a teacher in Detroit city schools. But in 1863 Fannie decided to strike out on her own. She opened a private school for African American children, which she operated for five years. In 1868, she returned to public schools when she was hired to teach in Colored School No. 2.
Under the leadership of John Bagley in 1870, Fannie and members of her family protested vehemently against Detroit’s segregated school system. The effort yielded the desired results when, in 1871, the Michigan State Supreme Court ordered the Detroit Board of Education to abolish separate schools for White and African American children. That same year, Fannie was transferred to the newly-integrated Everett Elementary School, where she established the first kindergarten in Detroit. In all, she taught at that school for 44 years.
Fannie’s activism went beyond the classroom, as she founded the Phyllis Wheatley Home for Aged Colored Ladies which was established to meet the needs of poor and elderly Black women in her community. In 1898, she became the home’s first president.
In 1915, after a career that spanned more than 50 years, Fannie retired. She passed away seven years later on Feb. 13, 1922, at the age of 81. For her work in Michigan’s schools, the Chalkboard Champion was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.
