Drama teacher Madeline Michel garners prestigious honor at 2019 Tony Awards

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It isn’t every day that a classroom educator receives a prestigious honor at an elite televised awards show, but drama teacher Madeline Michel of Charlottesville, Virginia did just that. She gained national recognition at last night’s 2019 Tony Awards when she captured the Theatre Education Awards during the Creative Arts Awards portion of the broadcast. Madeline has taught theater at Monticello High School in the Albemarle County Public School District for the past 12 years.

The award, which is presented jointly by the Tony Award and Carnegie Mellon University, recognizes the top k-12 drama teachers in the nation, and celebrates education for the performing arts. Madeline is the fifth recipient of the award, which was established in 2014.

Madeline says her teaching philosophy is to shut up, listen, watch, find out what’s important to her students, and follow their lead. And then offer encouragement and guidance where and when the teens need it. It’s an approach Madeline says she developed when she began teaching in 1980 in Baltimore, and one she’s refined over her 12 years at Monticello High. It was her creation of an inclusive drama program, inviting all kinds of kids, and the permission she gives those kids to express themselves freely onstage that resonates so strongly with them. Her student-written and performed plays have won numerous regional awards, including this year’s grand prize at the Virginia Theatre Conference.

“I’m proud to share this award with my students at Monticello High School,” Madeline remarked. In her acceptance speech, the stellar educator lavished praised on her students. “This award is for all of the students who have found their voice and who speak for themselves, their families, and their community through theater and play writing,” Madeline concluded.

Congratulations, Madeline! To read more about Madeline and her performing arts program, click here.

Teacher, coach, and former pro football player Herb Banet

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Teacher, coach, counselor, and former professional football player Herb Banet

When I think of chalkboard champions, I never forget all of our nation’s talented coaches. These dedicated professionals work many long hours with our young people, teaching them the value of self-discipline, healthy competition, fair play, and teamwork, and helping them to choose a healthy, active lifestyle. One such chalkboard champion in Herb Banet, a high school teacher, basketball coach, and guidance counselor from Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Herb was born in 1913 in Fort Wayne. As a high school student, he was a gifted athlete.  At 6’2″ and 200 pounds, he earned All-City Honors in both football and basketball. After his graduation from Fort Wayne South High School in 1933, he attended Manchester University in North Manchester, Indiana, where he played collegiate football. While at Manchester, Herb played All-Conference Football and All-State Football in 1934, 1935, and 1936. During the 1937 season, Herb played in the National Football League with the Green Bay Packers.

As if all this were not enough, Herb was also a war hero. When World War II broke out, he served his country in the US Navy.

These experience served him well during his eighteen-year career as a coach at Central High School in Fort Wayne. While coaching there, his team made one trip to the Final Four in 1960, where they were defeated by just one point by East Chicago Washington. Later in Herb’s career he served as a guidance counselor at Northrup High School. This talented educator retired in 1979. In recognition of his illustrious career as an athlete, he was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.

Herb Banet passed away in 2003 at the age of 89 and is buried at Falls Memorial Gardens in Wabash, Indiana. It is certain that his efforts as a gifted teacher, coach, and counselor will always be well-remembered.

Tisha: The true story of Anna Hobbs, a pioneer teacher in the Alaskan wilderness

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One of my favorite “teacher” books of all time is Tisha: The Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaska Wilderness. The volume is the memoir of pioneer teacher Anne Stevenson Hobbs, as told to masterful chronicler Robert Specht.

I absolutely love this action-packed true story about a young teacher who travels to the Alaskan wilderness in the 1920’s to teach in a frontier school. This book is as much an adventure story and a romance as it is a chronicle of early Alaskan history.

At the age of 19 in the 1920’s, Anne Hobbs, a plucky young lady, travels from her home in Colorado to the Alaskan wilderness with the intention of setting up a frontier school. She knows nothing about Alaska or living in the wilds, and she is completely naive about the social conditions or customs there, but she is full of a desire for adventure. She certainly finds it when she lands in a small village called Chicken. Besides encountering the expected lack of teaching materials and frigid temperatures, Anne heroically battles prejudice against the Native Alaskans when she falls in love with one of them.

If you haven’t read this book yet, run—don’t walk—to your nearest brick-and-mortar bookstore and buy it right away! You can also order Tisha on Amazon.com, but don’t wait too long to read this exciting story. This tale will keep you on the edge of your seat.