American-Israeli Jim Boatwright: Teacher, coach, and pro basketball player

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Many accomplished athletes go on to distinguished careers as educators and coaches. This is certainly true of history teacher and basketball coach Jim Boatwright.

Jim was born in Twin Falls, Minidoka County, Idaho, on December 10, 1951. When he was a youngster, his family moved to Rupert, Idaho, where Jim attended Minico High School. While there, Jim lettered in basketball, track, and golf. In basketball, Jim led his school team to back-to-back state championship games (1969, 1970). In addition, Jim’s high school honors include being named a Sunkist All-American, a Top 10 High School Player in America, and a participant in the prestigious Dapper Dan Classic held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This event is now known as the McDonald’s All-American Team. The talented basketball player graduated in 1970, and was later was inducted into the Idaho Basketball Hall of Fame.

After his high school graduation, Jim played on scholarship at Utah State University (USU) in Logan, Utah, where he was the leading scorer during both his junior and senior seasons. In addition, Jim was selected to play in the Pizza Hut East/West All-Star game in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was named Utah State University Athlete of the Year in 1974. Recently, USU voted Jim one of the Top 25 Athletes of the Century.

Jim graduated from Utah State University in 1974, having earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. Upon his graduation, Jim joined the European Professional Basketball League and played eight years for Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israel. During these years, Jim’s team won seven championship titles, six cup titles, and two European championship titles. Jim was instrumental in the Maccabi team’s win the European championship in 1977. He led Maccabi to a second win in 1980. Jim became an Israeli citizen, and in 1980 was named a member of the Israeli Olympic Basketball team for the Olympic Games held in Moscow.

In 1982, Jim retired from professional basketball and returned to the US with his former wife, Chris, and their four young children. In 1988, the former professional athlete began teaching and coaching in Star Valley, Wyoming, leading his team to a state championship. For his efforts, Jim was named Wyoming’s Coach of the Year. Jim later returned to his alma mater, Utah State, where he coached for three years with Head Coach Kohn Smith.

After a few years, Jim relocated to Arizona to teach and coach. There he met his second wife, Jennifer Magrane Boatwright. Jim and Jennifer taught and coached in several Arizona towns and also in California, but he returned to the Gem State ten years ago when he accepted a position as a social science teacher and assistant basketball coach at Wood River High School in Hailey, Blaine County, Idaho. In all, Jim’s career as an educator spanned 23 years.

Jim passed away on February 11, 2013, after suffering for a brief time from an aggressive cancer of the liver. He was 61. To learn more about this chalkboard champion see HJNews.com.

The campaign to establish Legendary Teachers Day

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At the Tucson Festival of Books last weekend I was excited to meet Dr. Nicholas I. Clement, a former teacher and superintendent of schools with a distinguished 38-year-long career as an educator. Nicholas is currently championing the cause of establishing a Legendary Teacher Day, to be celebrated on September 27, 2018. What a spectacular idea!

Nicholas explains that the definition of a legendary teacher is specific, yet simple. He says the premise is based on three tenets: building relationships, engaging deeply with students, and creating high expectations. “Legendary Teachers have frog eyes,” says Nicholas. “Frogs have great vision. They can see colors. They can see bugs at night. Some frogs have three lids, closing one for camouflage while still being able to see everything around them.” More about how to become a legendary teacher can be found in a slim little book Nicholas authored entitled How to Catch a Swamp Frog. The volume is available on amazon.com at this link: How to Catch a Swamp Frog.

Nicholas has spent many years in the field of education. This amazing educator began his career as a Special Education teacher, then moved on to become a principal at both the high school and junior high school level, and as an assistant superintendent. He also served as the superintendent of the Flowing Wells School District. Nicholas is currently the Dean of the College of Education at Northern Arizona University, where he is responsible for teaching and advocating for education throughout Arizona.

Nicholas earned his doctorate in Educational Administration at the University of Arizona. He earned his master’s degree in Educational Administration at the University of Nevada, and his bachelor’s degree at the University of Michigan.

Learn more about the campaign to establish Legendary Teachers Day at www.legendaryteacher.com.

 

Students nationwide mark the one-month anniversary of tragic shooting at Parkland high school

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Today we mark the one-month anniversary of the devastating shooting that took place at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018. Fourteen students and three teachers and staff members were killed in a murderous rampage by a troubled former student. Since the incident, survivors at the school and others nationwide have been calling for gun reform in an effort to decrease the number of gun deaths in our country. Today, over 185,000 students from 3,100 schools in 50 states participated in the observance, which occurred at 10:00 a.m. local time in each time zone and lasted for 17 minutes.

It’s amazing and wonderful to witness our youth using the democratic process to express themselves about an issue they feel passionately about. I think the photo below, obtained from NBC News, speaks eloquently for the movement. To read the entire NBC article, click on this link: Students Demand Action.

Teacher and Television Personality Jedediah Bila

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Many former educators have distinguished themselves in the entertainment world. This is certainly the case with Jedediah Louisa Bila, a middle school, high school, and college educator who has earned a name for herself as a prominent television personality.

Jedediah was born on January 29, 1979, in Brooklyn, New York. As a youngster, she grew up in Staten Island where she attended an all-girls Catholic high school. Upon her graduation, she enrolled at Wagner College, a private liberal arts college in Staten Island, where she majored in Spanish and minored in business administration. She graduated from Wagner as the valedictorian of her class. After her college graduation, Jedediah earned her master’s degree in Spanish literature from Columbia University.

As an educator, Jedediah has taught various courses at the middle school, high school, and college levels. She has worked with learners from age three to adult, teaching them such subjects as creative writing, academic writing, Spanish, and public speaking. She has also been employed as a high school academic dean and adviser.

In the entertainment field, Jedediah served as a co-host on the popular television show The View from August, 2016, to September, 2017. In fact, in 2017, she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host. Jedediah has also served as a Fox News contributor and as a regular panelist on shows such as Red Eye, MSNBC, and Lou Dobbs Tonight. She has also published a book, Outnumbered: Chronicles of a Manhattan Conservative, in May of 2011. She has also held several leadership positions in the marketing field.

You can learn more about this amazing educator and television personality at this link: Jedediah Bila Biography.