Educator Anna Boyd Ellington, founding member of the Delta Gamma Fraternity

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Anna Boyd Ellington

Educator Anna Boyd Ellington, one of three founding members of the Delta Gamma Fraternity.

Teachers are among the most community-minded individuals who work to improve the lives of citizens in any community. One of these very hardworking teachers is Anna Boyd Ellington, one of three founders of the Delta Gamma Fraternity in the 1800’s.

Anna was born on January 22, 1856, in Kosciusko, Atlanta County, Mississippi. Her father was a member of the Mississippi State Legislature, and her mother was a schoolteacher. Anna taught in public schools until her marriage to Daniel W. Ellington.

In 1873, Anna and two of her colleagues founded the Delta Gamma Fraternity at the Lewis School for Girls in Oxford, Mississippi. These three educators worked tirelessly to promote among their students a sense of high ideals and standards, intellectual growth, and community service. They chose as their motto “Do Good.”

The Delta Gamma fraternity still exists today. Now an international organization, membership has grown to more than 250,000 women worldwide, with 151 collegiate chapters and more than 200 alumnae groups across the United States and Canada. Members continue to place strong emphasis on personal values and standards, academic excellence, leadership, and service.

This chalkboard champion passed away on August 12, 1907. She was only 51 years old.

Krazy George Henderson: The professional cheerleader (and former teacher) who invented the “wave”

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Krazy George Henderson

Former shop teacher, professional cheerleader, and inventor of the wave Krazy George Henderson

Under ordinary circumstances the word “Krazy” is not a word we would like to associate with a teacher, but in the case of Krazy George Henderson, we happily make an exception. As a professional cheerleader and inventor of the wave, former high school shop teacher Krazy George is just a fun guy.

George inaugurated his cheerleading career in 1968 while a student at San Jose State University. During those years he was also a member of the school’s judo team which one a national championship. After his graduation from college, George continued cheerleading at local sporting events where he became well-known for beating a drum and shouting cheers in his gravelly voice.

After his graduation from college, George became a shop teacher at Buckser High School in Santa Clara, California. In 1975, his enthusiastic cheerleading was noticed by local sports teams. Not long after, he was hired to be a team cheerleader for the San Jose Earthquakes, the California Golden Seals, and the Kansas City Chiefs. Before long, Krazy George made cheerleading his new career.

George takes credit for inventing the famous wave. He says he got the idea for the popular fan move in 1980 when he was leading cheers at a National Hockey League game at Northlands Coliseum in Edmongton, Alberta, Canada. His original plan was to have fans on one side of the arena jump to their feet and cheer, and then fans on the opposite side respond. But there was a delay in the  response from one section of the fans which led them to jump to their feet a few seconds later than the others on their side. Before long, George perfected the move, which he debuted at the Oakland A’s baseball game on October 15, 1981. “I started with three sections and it went about five or six sections down,” Krazy George told KPIX-TV in San Francisco in a 2010 interview. “I did it again and it went 11 and then all the way around. It was insane,” he continued. Crowds all over the country have been “waving” ever since.

The former educator has left the classroom, but as he nears his 75th birthday he has enjoyed a career as a cheerleader for 40 years. In addition to his appearances as a cheerleader at professional sports events, George has been featured in People Magazine, he’s been a guest on such television programs as Hollywood Squares and To Tell the Truth, and he’s been interviewed on numerous national and local radio shows.

Enjoy this video of Krazy George demonstrating the wave below:

Rodney Robinson: Virginia’s 2019 Teacher of the Year

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In our country, we are so fortunate that there are many exceptional and inspirational educators in our schools. One of these is Rodney Robinson, a history teacher at Virgie Binford Education Center in Richmond, Virginia. Rodney has been named the 2019 Virginia Teacher of the Year.

Rodney has taught in Richmond Public Schools for 19 years, the last four years at Virgie Binford Binford is a school inside of the Richmond Juvenile Detention Center. Rodney once revealed that he became a teacher to honor his mother, who struggled to earn an education after being denied schooling as a child due to segregation and poverty in rural Virginia. 

For his work with juvenile offenders, Rodney has earned many accolades. In addition to the Virginia Teacher of the Year honor, he garnered  the REB Award for Teaching Excellence. He is a member of Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney’s Education Compact Team, which includes politicians, educators, business leaders, and community leaders, and is working with city leaders and local colleges to recruit under-represented male teachers into the field of education. He has also worked with Pulitzer Award winning author James Foreman on developing curriculum units on race, class, and punishment as a part of the Yale Teacher’s Institute.

Rodney says he is very grateful for the recognition. “I want to thank my students,” Rodney said when he accepted the award, “My students are the most vulnerable kids in society. They have succumbed to the pressure of urban living and made mistakes that they are paying for, but they still persevere and strive for success,” he expressed. “They are my inspiration, and I will fight to my last heart beat for them.”

Rodney earned his Bachelor’s degree in History and his Master’s degree in Educational Administration and Supervision, both from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Teacher Janet Do of Oregon garners a 2018 Milken Award

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Janet Do

First grade teacher Janet Do of Whitman Elementary School in Portland, Oregon, garners a Milken Educator Award in 2018.

Our nation’s schools are very fortunate to enjoy the benefit of talented educators. One of these is Janet Do, a first grade teacher at Whitman Elementary School in Portland, Oregon. In 2018, Janet was honored with a Milken Educator Award.

The daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, Janet graduated from Portland’s Benson High School in 2007. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Arts and Letters in 2012, and her Master’s degree in Education in 2013, both from Portland State University.

One of Janet’s strengths is building community. She forms strong, genuine relationships with her students, helps all her kids set and reach attainable goals, and is quick to advocate for children with special needs. She incorporates brain science and mindfulness techniques into her instructional program, and the results are measurable. More than 70% of her class demonstrated an increase of 1.5 years’ growth in reading last year, though only two of her 21 students began the year reading at grade level.

Janet’s school serves an area with many transient families, so Janet welcomes new students into her classroom throughout the year, quickly making them and their families feel at home. Janet speaks Vietnamese and was instrumental in planning Whitman’s first Multicultural Night, where she set up a booth to share Asian cultural activities.

In 2018 Janet earned a Milken Educator Award. She is the only teacher in Oregon and one of just 40 nationwide chosen to receive the honor in 2018. The Milken Educator Awards has been described by Teacher magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” The award has been used to honor exceptional educators for over 30 years. Milken Educators are selected in early to mid-career for what they have achieved to date, and for the promise of what they will accomplish as they continue through their careers. 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 top teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education.