Celebrated musician Conrad Johnson chooses teaching over fame and fortune

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Talented musician Conrad Johnson gives up fame and fortune with international orchestras to pursue a career as a music educator.

If you are a music teacher or a jazz aficionados, you have no doubt heard of Conrad Johnson, Sr., a music educator from Houston, Texas. In addition to his role as a remarkable educator, Conrad was a phenomenal musician.

Conrad once played with the legendary Count Basie, and Erskine Hawkins once tried to persuade him to join his orchestra. But Conrad declined the fame and fortune he was offered because he didn’t want to leave his family or his give up his career as a  teacher. “Conrad Johnson is one of Houston’s unsung cultural heroes,” says Rick Mitchell, former pop music critic for the Houston Chronicle. “He could have made a national name for himself with his two big bands. Instead he chose to devote his career to educating Houston’s future musicians. He is retired from the school system, but he’s still hard at work as an educator.”

Born in Victoria, Texas, the young Conrad was nine years old when his family moved to the port city of Houston. After graduating from Yates High School, Conrad attended Houston College for Negroes, and then Wiley College in Marshall in eastern Texas, where he graduated in 1941. He started his career as a music educator at Kashmere High School that same year.

Conrad made a lasting contribution to music when he formed the Kashmere Stage Band, an internationally-known school orchestra that won a number of awards during its decade-long existence. His kids always called him “Prof.” Under Prof’s tutelage, the student musicians in the Kashmere Band won forty-two out of the forty-six competitions they entered between 1969 and 1977. They recorded eight albums featuring more than twenty original compositions by Conrad, and they went on tour throughout the United States, Japan, and Europe.

In 1978, following a thirty-seven-year career, Conrad retired from his position at Kashmere High School. In his retirement, he continued to remain active in shaping music in Houston by conducting summer programs and in-home tutoring. In 2000, the talented educator was inducted into the Texas Bandmasters Hall of Fame. The Conrad O. Johnson School of Fine Arts, a magnet school at Kashmere High School, is named after him. This wonderful teacher and musician passed away in 2008 at the age of 92.

To learn more about this chalkboard champion, click on this link: The Conrad O. Johnson Music and Fine Arts Foundation.

Missouri English teacher and author of romantic novels Michele Dunaway

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Michele Dunaway of St. Louis, Missouri. She is an English and Journalism teacher and successful author of romantic novels.

There are many examples of excellent classroom teachers who earn accolades in fields outside of education. Michele Dunaway, an author of romantic novels, is one of these.

Michele was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 14, 1965, the elder of two siblings. The successful author says she knew she wanted to be a teacher and an author by the time she was a third grader at Mary Queen of Peace School in Webster Groves. As a teenager, Michele attended Kirkwood High School in Kirkwood, Missouri. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at the University of Missouri at St. Louis in 1987. She earned her Master’s degree at Webster University, a private nonprofit university located in Webster Groves, Missouri, in 1996. While completing her education, Michele served on Kirkwood High School’s newspaper staff, her college paper, and a local music newspaper 

Michele inaugurated her teaching career as a junior high school teacher in Fenton, Missouri, where she worked from 1994 to 2000. She taught high school in Brentwood, Missouri from 2000 to 2001. She has taught high school English at Pacific High School in Pacific, Missouri, since 2001. She has also taught journalism at Francis Howell High School in St. Charles County.

When she was young, Michele often experimented with writing, but she didn’t attempt to publish until 1999. At that time Michele met with an editor who requested some samples of her work. Once the teacher provided it, the editor was eager to publish them. Her novels include A Little Office Romance, Taming the Tabloid Heiress, The Simply Scandalous Princess, Catching the Corporate Playboy, Sweeping the Bride Away, The Playboy’s Protegee, and About Last Night….

For her work Michele has earned many accolades. She was named the Missouri Interscholastic Press Association High School Journalism Teacher of the Year for 2012. To learn more about this amazing educator and author, read the article at the Webster Kirkwood Times. You can also check out her website at micheledunaway.com.

 

Read inspirational stories about teachers over summer vacation! Terry Lee Marzell recommends…

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Congratulations! You have nearly made it to the end of another school year! Dedicated educators all over the country are busy wrapping up their current instructional programs, grading projects and working on finals, calculating semester grades, and cleaning up their classrooms. Many are preparing for commencement ceremonies, from pre-school to college. So much to do before the onset of summer vacation!

You might be considering buying end-of-year gifts for that favorite co-worker at your school, especially the one that is retiring, the teacher in your family, your child’s special teacher, or maybe that history buff you know. Or you might be thinking about indulging yourself, and stocking up on something inspirational to read during your much-needed time off. The kids aren’t the only ones who can benefit from a summer reading list, right?

Reading the stories of inspirational teachers in American history is a terrific way to reflect upon your successes from the past year. And they can really add that extra oomph that helps you recharge your batteries for the year to come. 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), both by Terry Lee Marzell. Each one available in print or in e-book formats and is reasonably priced. You can also browse the titles on the Books to Read list found elsewhere on this website.

However you decide to spend your precious time off, enjoy!

Educator Brittany Larsen of North Dakota earns a coveted Milken Award

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Tiffany Larsen

Brittany Larsen, a first grade teacher from Grafton, North Dakota, earns a coveted Milken Award.

Our nation’s students are so fortunate to have so many talented educators staffing our public schools. These hardworking individuals work tirelessly to develop innovative and effective instructional programs, and they genuinely care about their students. One of these is Brittany Larsen, a first grade teacher from Grafton, North Dakota.

Brittany earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2008 from the University of Minnesota, Duluth. She earned her Master’s degree in Differentiated Instruction in 2017 from Concordia University.

A native of Grafton, this amazing educator has taught first grade at Century Elementary School in her home town for the past ten years. Brittany continuously strives for improvement in her instruction, and she differentiates her instruction to meet the needs of each student. In addition, this amazing professional educator mentors new teachers, models lessons for other instructors, and she serves on leadership committees for curriculum, assessments, and special education.

Brittany says she loves to come to school every day, where she instills a sense of family in her students. She says her goal is to make sure students “know they are loved, they are safe, and they will be engaged throughout the day.” Knowing they are loved “is everything. Learning comes second,” she asserts. “They need the feeling of security. Otherwise they cannot focus,” she concludes.

“Brittany’s commitment, consideration, and dedication to the students in her class is a true reflection of the type of person she is,” comments Darren Albrecht, Superintendent of Grafton Public Schools. “Brittany is truly deserving of this recognition, and we thank her for everything she does for students and families.”

The Milken Educator Awards have been described by Teacher magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to the $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 2,700 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education. Brittany is one of up to 40 educators, and the only one from North Dakota, who received the Milken Educator Award for the 2018-2019 year. To learn more, click on Milken Educator Awards.