Mark Geiger: The High School Math Teacher with International Acclaim as a Soccer Referee

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There are many examples of talented educators who have also logged impressive accomplishments in athletic arenas. Such is certainly the case with Mark Geiger, a former high school math teacher who now serves as a referee for Major League Soccer in both the United States and Canada.

imagesMark was born on August 25, 1974, in Beachwood, New Jersey. After graduating from Trenton State College, Mark taught advanced placement math at Lacey Townships High School in Lanoka Harbor, Ocean County, New Jersey. In 2009, this remarkable educator was one of 103 teachers who received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching. The prestigious award is given annually to the best elementary and secondary science and mathematics teachers from across the country. The winners were selected by a panel of distinguished scientists, mathematicians, and educators following a state-level selection process.

Mark earned his National Referee badge in 2003 while still teaching. He began his career as a part-time MLS referee a year later. In 2008, Geiger was added to U.S. Soccer’s International Panel of Referees, making him eligible for higher-profile international matches and requiring more travel. When he was offered a full-time, salaried position with the Professional Referee Organization, he reluctantly decided to retire from teaching. He wanted to referee international matches, and he was aware of FIFA’s preference for officials with full-time referee jobs.

Mark confesses that his experiences as a teacher has made a significant contribution to his success as a soccer referee. He once commented that math is about quantity, structure, space, and change, and that is also true of  the dynamics on the soccer field. He also remarked that maintaining order and clarity in a classroom of gifted, confident students is not that different from fairly governing the lightning-fast interplay of 22 of the world’s most gifted and talented soccer players. “When I was in the classroom, it was 25 or 30 students each with a different learning style,” he has said. “On the soccer field you have 22 different players, each with different personalities. So it’s about recognizing what’s going to work with a particular player and then implementing that.” He added, “The situations that are in the grey areas, preventing players from taking that next step, communicating with them, managing them, working with them” is what a good referee brings to the game. Sounds a lot like great teaching.

Mark is recognized as one of the best professional soccer referees in the business. He has worked the  Olympics games in 2012 and four matches during the U-20 World Cup finals in Colombia, which culminated in his officiating the championship game. The U-20 final marked the first time an American official refereed a major FIFA men’s tournament championship. Mark has also been to Morocco for FIFA’s Club World Cup, and he worked the fifth-place match between the Egyptian and the Mexican club. Later Mark served as the fourth official at the championship game. For his outstanding work as a referee, Mark was selected the Major League Soccer Referee of the Year in both 2011 and 2014.

Mark Geiger: a true chalkboard champion.

Educators Are Well Represented by Shanna Peeples, the 2015 National Teacher of the Year

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412553_img650x420_img650x420_cropOne of the most inspirational chalkboard champions I have learned about recently is Shanna Peeples, a high school English teacher from Amarillo, Texas. Shanna was honored this Wednesday by President Obama as the 2015 National Teacher of the Year.

Shanna, who teaches at Palo Duro High School, is the first educator from the state of Texas to earn the national honor since 1957. The prestigious award was given to her in recognition for her dedication and service to immigrant students, primarily refugees from East Africa, many of whom came to Texas after spending time in Kakuma, a camp established in Kenya for displaced persons. Available jobs in feedlots and slaughterhouses attracted these refugee families to Amarillo.

Palo Duro Principal Sandy Whitlow says Shanna is a lifelong learner who inspires her students and colleagues. “Shanna can tailor instruction to the needs of her students, whether she is working with refugees who have suffered traumatic events in their lives, or AP students who crave challenging curriculum, or at-risk students who are attending school in the evenings to recover lost credits,” describes Whitlow. “The bottom line is that her students know she truly cares about them, and she will invest every ounce of energy in helping them attain their goals.”

Shanna teaches AP English and English III, and she serves as the English department chair. She also serves as an instructional coach for other teachers. Not only does Shanna teach her regular day classes, but she also instructs an evening credit recovery program for pregnant teens and young people just released from juvenile detention. Shanna says the most important thing she does as an educator is to make every one of her students feel valued. “That’s what we all need,” she says. “We need kindness. We need understanding, and we need a sense of belonging. Kindness is probably my first and best lesson.”

After President Obama presented the crystal apple award to the Lone Star educator, he recognized fifty-four other deserving chalkboard champions from around the country. “I think what it takes to make a great teacher is somebody who just loves what they do, who loves kids and who loves to bring out the potential in every kid,” Shanna expressed at the Rose Garden ceremony.

She represents all of us in the profession very well indeed.

The Music Lives On, Due to Chalkboard Champion Hortense Parker Gilliam

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hparker2Throughout history, our lives have been genuinely enriched by legions of music teachers who have perpetuated the love of music in our young people. One such music teacher was Hortense Parker Gilliam, an elementary school music teacher who is the first known African American graduate of Mount Holyoke Female Seminary.

Hortense Parker was born in Ripley, Ohio, in 1859, the fourth of six children born to John Parker and Miranda (Boulden) Parker, a free black couple. Her mother was born free in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her father was born into slavery, but in 1845 he was able to buy his freedom. John Parker became a noted abolitionist, inventor, and industrialist. Before the outbreak of the Civil War, John guided hundreds of slaves to freedom via the Underground Railroad. In fact, the Parker home has been renovated and is now designated a National Historic Landmark.

Hortense’s parents were determined that all of their children should get an education. As children, Hortense and her two younger sisters received a standard education in traditional subjects, and they also studied music. After her high school graduation in 1878, Hortense enrolled in Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, now known as Mount Holyoke College, in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Her expenses were paid by a wealthy patron. The institution did not know she was a woman of color until she arrived on campus, but they did not cast her out. On the contrary, Hortense lived on campus in a dormitory along with 250 other students. Unlike many institutions of her day, Mt. Holyoke did not require its black students to live off campus. Hortense was remembered by her classmates as “a quiet ladylike girl, noted especially for her musical ability.” Because of her exceptional musical abilities, faculty and fellow students alike often asked her to play the piano in the seminary in the evenings after classes were done. She had aspirations to continue her music education in Europe upon her graduation, but unfortunately her patron passed away during her senior year. She graduated in 1883, the first known African American student to graduate from that institution.

After graduating from college in 1883, Hortense taught music and piano at Lincoln Elementary School in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1906-1913. That same year she married James Marcus Gilliam, a graduate of Cornell University, and moved with him to St. Louis, where she taught music. During her long career, she also taught music at schools in New York and Indiana.

As the first African-American graduate of Mt. Holyoke, Hortense was featured in Our Path: Students of Color at Mt. Holyoke at the 2007 Alumnae Student Conference there. This chalkboard champion passed away on December 9, 1938, near St. Louis, Missouri.

Teaching in the School with No Name: The Remarkable Stacy Bess

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about-staceyHere is a teacher who is truly inspirational: Stacey Bess of Salt Lake City, Utah. As a first-year teacher, Stacey landed in a classroom set up in a storage shed in an area homeless shelter. The facility was literally referred to as the School With No Name. As you can imagine, her students wrestled with a variety of issues, including unstable living arrangements, domestic abuse, poverty, and alcohol and drug-abusing parents. Not the most desirable circumstances for learning. But this remarkable teacher created a safe and loving classroom environment for her kids. She went to battle with the local school board for a more suitable teaching space and better resources. And, oh, yeah, she raised her own family and defeated cancer at the same time.

You can read the story of the dynamic Stacey Bess in Beyond the Blackboard, available through amazon.com.

Teacher Appreciation at Barnes and Noble

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DSCN3405I truly enjoyed my author appearance at the Barnes and Noble at the Shoppes in Chino Hills last Saturday and Sunday. The event was scheduled to coincide with the store’s celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week. I am so grateful to the store, and Amy, who personally coordinated this event, for all of their year-long support for teachers, schools, and libraries.

In addition to signing copies of my books, I became engaged in many, many conversations with bookstore patrons of all ages about their favorite teachers. I often tell people that I love to tell stories about great teachers, so I truly enjoyed the opportunity to share the stories of some of the teachers in my books. But I was also particularly interested to hear all the marvelous stories about remarkable teachers that others had to share with me.

DSCN3404To honor these educators, I asked the patrons to write a message to a special teacher on an “apple” and then post it on the Teacher Appreciation Board. By the end of each day, there were three layers of inspirational messages to the terrific teachers of Chino Hills and nearby cities. Some of the “apples,” however, were carried away by the writers, who wanted to present them personally to their teachers. I think it’s wonderful to write a message and post if for the world to see, but so much better for the teacher to receive that message personally!

By the time the event was over, I was filled with so much pride for the teaching profession. How wonderful it is to be a fellow educator! I hope to do other events like this in the future. Perhaps next time, I will see you there!