Texas educator and community activist Leona Washington

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Many talented educators also work to improve the lives of the people of their city through community activism. Leona Washington of El Paso, Texas, was one such educator. Photo credit: El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs.

Many talented educators also work to improve the lives of the people of their city through community activism. Leona Washington of El Paso, Texas, was one such educator.

Leona was born in 1928 in El Paso. As a young woman, she attended Prairie View  A&M University. There she earned both her Bachelor’s and her Master’s degrees. Once she earned her degrees, Leona taught for two years in  Las Cruces schools. Later, Leona became a teacher in Douglass School, a segregated school in the El Paso Independent School District. Her career there spanned 39 years.

In addition to her classroom duties, Leona founded the McCall Neighborhood Center in El Paso. There she worked as the first Executive Director of the facility, which served both the African American and Mexican American communities in the city. In addition, she was a co-founder and principal organizer of the annual Miss Black El Paso Southwest Scholarship Pageant. She also served as President, Vice-President, and Treasurer of the Phillis Wheatley Chapter of El Paso, an organization that provided a food bank for needy families and the elderly. She was also a member of the NAACP, the El Paso Community Foundation Advisory Board, the Arts and Resources Board of El Paso, and the Planned Parenthood Board of El Paso.

As if all this were not enough, Leona accepted the responsibilities of publishing The Good Neighbor Interpreter, a newspaper that provided news about the African American community to the residents of El Paso. In addition, she composed the song “The City of El Paso,” which was adopted as the city’s official song in the 1980’s.

For her many works of community activism, Leona earned many accolades. She was inducted into the El Paso County Democratic Hall of Fame in 1984, and in 1991, she was inducted into the El Paso Women’s Hall of Fame. She was given the city of El Paso’s Conquistador Award in 2000. She also received Woman of the Year Award in 2002 and the Myrna J. Deckert Lifetime Achievement Award by the YWCA in 2007, the last honor posthumously.

Leona passed away on August 5, 2007. To learn more about this amazing Chalkboard Champion, see this article about her published in the Texas State Historical Association.

 

Terry Marzell reminds us that, in the classroom, words matter

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Terry Marzell relates a story that demonstrates that, in the classroom, words matter. Photo credit: Terry Marzell.

Is there any teacher today who isn’t aware that, in the classroom, words matter? Critical or negative words can totally crush a student, and that sting may last a long time. On the other hand, the uplifting or positive words we use can create the most wonderful results. These results may last a lifetime in the ear, the head, and the heart of the recipient. So it’s worth giving some extra thought to the words we choose.

When choosing words, I try to remember to ask myself whether voicing those particular words will bring comfort or joy to the listener. I remember once a parent conference I had with the mother of one of my seniors who was not doing well in my class. The course was required for graduation, and the mother was fraught with worry that her son, the eldest of her children, wouldn’t pass. Clearly, she had been self-criticizing herself mercilessly for some time. She had convinced herself that she was a failure because her son was struggling.

“My mother was such a good mother,” the lady told me. “My father had left the family, and my mother raised six children by herself, all while working full time. And she did such a great job of it,” she continued disconsolately. “I only wish I could be as good a mother as she was. I wish I could be like her.”

After a moment, I responded, “You are a good mother in your own way.”  Instantly the parent leaped to her feet, threw her arms around me, and thanked me profusely. Her response surprised me at the time, but when I thought about the exchange later, I realized I had expressed exactly the words she needed to hear at that moment. I had chosen my words well.

This caring and dedicated mother became my ally until the day I retired. And her son did pass my class and graduate with his class. I never saw the young man again, but the mother came to visit me periodically, giving me updates on how her son was faring out there in the world. I truly appreciated these updates.

Words matter. They matter so much more than we realize. So, no matter who you are or who you are talking to, try to make your words inspirational and hopeful.

 

PE teacher and coach Matthew Beaver succumbs to Covid-19

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Physical Education teacher and coach Matthew Beaver of Salisbury, North Carolina, succumbed to Covid-19 on Jan. 19, 2021. Photo credit: Salisbury post.

We are sad to report that Covid-19 has claimed the life of yet another beloved educator. Matthew Beaver, a physical education teacher and coach from Salisbury, North Carolina, succumbed to the disease on Jan. 19, 2021. He was only 40 years old.

Matthew was born on Nov. 24, 1980, in Christianburg, Virginia. He graduated from East Rowan High School in Rowan County, North Carolina, in 1999. Following high school, Matthew earned his degrees in Health and Physical Education. He first attended Piedmont Bible College. While there, he played college basketball. He also attended High Point University. In 2006, Matthew was honored a the Outstanding Student Teacher and Outstanding Physical Education Major.

Matthew inaugurated his career as an educator when he accepted an interim position at Southeast Middle School in the Rowan-Salisbury School System in 2006. At the time of his passing, the beloved educator was teaching physical education at Knox Middle School in Salisbury. He also served his school as a coach of basketball and tennis. He had been employed there since 2007, a total of 13 years.

Matthew was highly respected by his students, their parents, and his colleagues, and he will be fondly remembered. “Great with the kids — his kids and students. He affected so many people in a positive manner, made me a better teacher,” remarked colleague James Phillips. Co-worker Justin Pauley agreed. “He would get to work early. He would never miss. He’d put everybody above himself. His wife, his kids, he bragged about, loved them, talked about them constantly,” Pauley recalled. The beloved educator leaves behind a wife, Ruth, who is also a teacher, and two young children.

To read more about Matthew Beaver, see this article published by the Salisbury Post.

Niilo Koponen: Teacher and member of Alaska’s House of Reps

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Niilo Koponen was an elementary school teacher and principal from Alaska who also served in his state’s House of Representatives. Photo credit: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Many capable educators are also excellent politicians. This is true of Niilo Koponen, an elementary school teacher and principal from Alaska who also served in his state’s House of Representatives.

Niilo was born on March 6, 1928 in the Bronx section of New York City, New York, Following his graduation from the High School of Music and Art in 1945, he attended Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. There he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Social Administration and Sociology in 1952. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Education and Anthropology from the University of Alaska in 1957, and he also studied anthropology at the London School of Economics and Political Science in London, England. Niilo completed the requirements for his Ph.D. in Educational Administration from Harvard University in 1966.

Niilo and his wife moved to Fairbanks in 1952. The couple homesteaded 160 acres and raised a family of five children. For some time, Niilo worked as a surveyor and an electrician, but later he accepted a position an an elementary school teacher at University Park Elementary in the North Star Borough School District located in Fairbanks. He taught fifth and sixth grades from 1957 to 1962. Eventually Niilo became the principal of the school. He also taught night school and extended day courses in anthropology, sociology, Arctic Peoples, and Arctic Natives at the University of Alaska. He also served as a grants administrator for the school district and consultant for other projects, including the development of village high schools, director for Greater Fairbanks Head Start, and a labor investigator for the Alaska Human Rights Commission.

All his life, Niilo was committed to service to others and the improvement of his community. In 1948, Niilo volunteered at a Quaker work camp in Finland helping World War II refugees from Soviet occupation. In 1982, Niilo was elected on the Democratic ticket to represent the 21st District in the Alaska House of Representatives . He served five terms there, from 1983 to 1992.

This Chalkboard Champion passed away on December 3, 2013, in Fairbanks, Alaska. He was 85 years old.  To read more about him, see this obituary published by the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.