Jazzmyne Townsend named DC’s 2025 Teacher of the Year

Posted on by

Elementary Special Education teacher Jazzmyne Townsend has been recognized as Washington DC’s 2025 Teacher of the Year, and one of four finalists for the title of 2025 National Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Jazzmyne Townsend

There are many outstanding educators working today in America’s public schools. Some of them have been singled out for special recognition. One of these is Jazzmyne Townsend, an elementary teacher from Washington DC. She has been named the District’s 2025 Teacher of the Year. She has also been named one of four national finalists for the title of 2025 National Teacher of the Year.

Jazzmyne teaches second and third grade Special Education at Stanton Elementary School. Prior to teaching at Stanton, she taught pre-K, kindergarten, and first grade at Randle Highlands Elementary School from 2013—2023 and preschool and pre-K at Friendship Public Charter School’s Chamberlain Campus from 2010—2013. So far, Jazzmyne’s career as an educator spans 16 years. 

In her classroom, Jazzmyne employs research-based and developmentally appropriate strategies to meet the diverse needs of her learners. Her proficiency in integrating culturally responsive pedagogy has increased academic achievement and fostered a sense of belonging among her students. And because she recognizes the unique challenges faced by youngsters in urban settings, Jazzmyne has been a steadfast advocate for resources that support the children from this environment.

Jazzmyne’s influence extends far beyond the classroom. For example, when she noticed many girls who were struggling with challenges both inside and outside the classroom, she started “My Sister’s Keeper,” a group to serve as a safe place for the girls to form friendships, ask questions, be vulnerable, and develop as young women.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Jazzmyne is also a published author. She has written a book for children entitled Hattie Leads the Way. The volume, published in 2023, can be found on amazon.

Jazzmyne earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Howard University in 2009. She earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the American College of Education (ACS) in 2013. Currently, she is working on her PhD.

Prescott Cogswell: Drivers’ Ed teacher and US veteran

Posted on by

Longtime Drivers’ Education teachers and veteran Prescott Cogswell Photo credit: Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

This is probably a first for me: to write a story about a public school Drivers’ Education teacher. Yet here it is, a blog post about Prescott Cogswell, who was exactly such a teacher in Southern California.

Prescott was born on October 19, 1927, on a family farm in El Monte, a suburb of Los Angeles, during a time when that small town was still farmland. As a young man, he served a stint in the United States Navy during World War II. He was stationed in Newport, Rhode Island, where he served as an archivist. When the war was ended, Prescott returned to Southern California, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree from Pomona College in 1951. He then earned his Master’s degree in Education from California State University, Los Angeles.

Once he earned his degrees, Prescott taught briefly in Calexico, a city in Imperial County, situated on the border with Mexicali, Mexico. Later he relocated to the Riverside area, where he accepted a position at Riverside Polytechnic High School. There he taught Drivers’ Education, and reportedly taught many teenagers in Riverside to drive. In fact, one of his students was renowned professional baseball player Bobby Bonds. Next, Prescott spent several years working in the district’s Audio-Visual Department before deciding to return to the classroom, where he taught History at Central Middle School. He also taught for some years at Lincoln High School. Prescott retired from the teaching profession in 1985, but continued to conduct classes part-time for an additional five years as a member of the emeritus program.

In addition to his work in the classroom, Prescott served many years as an Assistant Scoutmaster, helping youngsters learn an appreciation for the outdoors by leading their monthly camping weekends.

Sadly, this accomplished educator and US veteran passed away April 19, 2025. He was 98 years old. He was interred at Riverside National Cemetery for veterans in Riverside, California.

 

New Jersey’s Ethel De Long Zande: Founder of settlement schools

Posted on by

New Jersey English teacher Ethel De Long Zande helped establish a settlement school in rural Appalachia to educate mountain children. She is seen here with a mountain dulcimer. Photo credit: Pine Mountain Settlement House Collections.

Throughout American history, many fine educators have worked tirelessly to advance the cause of progressive education. One of these was Ethel De Long Zande, a teacher from New Jersey who helped establish a settlement school in rural Appalachia in the early 20th century. The school was established to educate mountain children.

Ethel was born in Montclair, New Jersey, in 1879. When she was young, her father and younger sister were disabled, and Ethel became their caregiver. As a teenager, her family moved to Northampton, New Jersey, and Ethel enrolled at nearby Smith College, where she attended from 1897 to 1901. She earned her Bachelor’s degree there. During her college years, she worked as a tutor and a teacher at Easthampton High School.

Once she earned her degrees, Ethel worked as a teacher at Central High School in Springfield, Massachusetts. Her career there spanned five years. In 1905, she relocated to Indianapolis, where she taught English at Manual Training High School for five years. It was then that Ethel was appointed principal of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union Settlement School in Hindman, Knott County, Kentucky. The school was later known as the Hindman Settlement School. In 1912, Ethel became one of the founding members of the Pine Mountain Settlement School located in rural Harlan County, Kentucky. There she established a reputation for creating especially stimulating lessons, asking her students to write and read letters, and to engage in lively conversation, discussion, and debate.

To read more about this Chalkboard Champion, see this biography about her printed in Pine Mountain Settlement School Collections.

Elaine Goodale Eastman, the “Sister to the Sioux”

Posted on by

Teacher Elaine Goodall Eastman, who described herself as a Sister to the Sioux, established a day school on a Sioux Indian reservation in the territory of South Dakota. Photo Credit: Public Domain

Many talented and dedicated educators have devoted themselves to working for disenfranchised groups of students. One of these was Elaine Goodale Eastman, who often described herself as a “Sister to the Sioux.”

When she was just a young woman, Elaine, originally from Massachusetts, established a day school on a Sioux Indian reservation in the territory of South Dakota. Contrary to prevailing opinion of her day, she believed very strongly that it was best to keep Native American children at home rather than transport them far away from their families to Indian boarding schools. She hadn’t taught on the reservation very long when she was promoted to the position of Superintendent of Indian Education for the Two Dakotas. In this capacity, she travelled throughout the five Dakota reservations, visiting the more than 60 government and missionary schools within her jurisdiction, and writing detailed evaluation reports on each school she visited.

It was because of her work that Elaine just happened to be visiting the Pine Ridge Reservation when the tragic Wounded Knee Massacre took place. As a result of this tragedy, more than 200 men, women, and children from the Lakota tribe were killed, and another 51 were wounded. In addition, 25 government soldiers were also killed, most by “friendly fire,” and another 39 were wounded. Following the massacre, Elaine and her fiance,  physician Charles Eastman of the Santee Sioux tribe, cared for the survivors and wrote detailed government reports to accurately describe what happened.

In her later years, when America was experiencing a back-to-nature revival, Elaine and her husband operated Indian-themed summer camps in New Hampshire. Read more of the life story of this fascinating educator in Theodore D. Sargent’s biography The Life of Elaine Goodale Eastman, or an encapsulated version in my book,  Chalkboard Champions: Twelve Remarkable Teachers Who Educated America’s Disenfranchised Students, both available on amazon.