Tag Archives: English Teachers

Former English teacher Samira Ahmed earns success as an author of young adult novels

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Former high school English teacher Samira Ahmed earns success as an author of young adult novels.

There are many classroom teachers who have achieved success in arenas outside of the classroom. One of these is Samira Ahmed, a former high school English teacher who has established herself as an author of popular young adult novels.

Samira was born in Bombay, India. She was raised in Batavia, Illinois, and in Chicago, Illinois. As a youngster, Samira says she spent countless hours at her local library nestled in an overstuffed armchair next to an old Victorian fireplace with her nose in a book. Her favorites were Agatha Christie novels and Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.

As a young woman, Samira earned both her Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature and her Master’s degree in English at the University of Chicago. After earning her college degrees, Samira accepted her first teaching position at Niles North High School in Skokie, Illinois. She taught high school English there from 1994 to 1999. Next, she worked as the Humanities Department Chair at Young Women’s Leadership School in New York City from 1999 to 2000. From 2005 to 2007, she was employed as the Director of External Affairs for New Visions for Public Schools in New York City.

Samira published her first novel, Love, Hate & Other Filters, in 2018. The book is about a Muslim Indian-American teenager and her attempts to cope with Islamophobia. The novel was praised by Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal. Her second book, Internment, features a setting in the future where Muslims are sent to internment camps as the result of a law passed by an Islamophobic president. This novel received praise from Kirkus Reviews and Entertainment Weekly. This Fall, Samira will publish her third book, Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know. The novel is a literary mystery inspired by a poem by Lord Byron and a painting by Eugene Delacroix. The plot follows a young Muslim girl that leads the readers through parts of forgotten Paris.

To learn more about this chalkboard champion and successful author, visit her website at Samira Ahmed.

Myra Davis Hemmings: English and Drama teacher also an accomplished actress

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Myra Davis Hemmings: a Drama and English teacher and accomplished actress 

There are many examples of fine educators that have enjoyed successes in fields other than education. One of these is Myra Davis Hemmings, a teacher of English and drama at Phyllis Wheatley High School in San Antonio, Texas. Myra’s career as an educator spanned fifty-one years, but she can also boast about significant accomplishments in theater and film.

This gifted teacher and actress was born in Gonzales, Texas, in 1887, the daughter of Henry Davis and Susan (Dement) Davis. After graduating from Riverside High School in San Antonio, Texas, in 1909, Myra enrolled in Washington DC’s all-black Howard University. During her college years, Myra had the distinction of being president of both the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. She graduated from Howard in 1913 and immediately began her career in the classroom. Later, Myra returned to the university to earn her master’s degree from Northwestern University’s Speech Department in 1947.

This outstanding educator was also active in community service projects. Myra served as the national vice president, a former regional director, and an active member of the National Council of Negro Women. She was also a member of the NAACP.

As a drama teacher, Myra directed plays from the 1920s to the 1950s at the Carver Community Cultural Center in San Antonio. She also became active as a director in the San Antonio Negro Little Theater.

In her later years, she was a national vice president, a former regional director, and an active member of the National Council of Negro Women. She was also a member of the NAACP.

As a drama teacher, Myra directed community plays from the 1920s to the 1950s at the Carver Community Cultural Center in San Antonio. She also became active as a director in the San Antonio Negro Little Theater. She and her husband, a former Broadway actor named John W. Hemmings, helped to organize the Phyllis Wheatley Dramatic Guild Players. In addition to all this, the talented teacher appeared in three films.

Myra  Davis Hemmings passed away in San Antonio in 1968. She was 73 years old. Both the classroom and the entertainment community miss this chalkboard champion greatly.

Teacher Sarah Lerner helps traumatized students recover from Parkland shooting

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Teacher Sarah Lerner uses all her teacher skills to help her students recover from the traumatic mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School last year.

In the aftermath of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day last year, teacher Sarah Lerner has been using all her teacher skills to help her students recover from their trauma.

Sarah serves her school as an English teacher and yearbook adviser. In this year’s annual, the perceptive and responsive educator suggested to her students that they include portraits of the 14 therapy dogs that have been welcomed on campus to help the traumatized students cope. The dogs have obviously become an important part of the healing process. “I’ll be teaching and in comes a dog and these big 18-year-old adults all of a sudden become mushy 5-year-old kids, and it’s been such a comfort for us,” Sarah explained.

Sarah has also provided her students with the opportunity to express their emotions in a book she edited and published entitled Parkland Speaks: Survivors from Marjory Stoneman Douglas Share Their Stories. In the book, the teens share their experiences, grief, anger, determination, healing, and hope. The collection includes poetry, eyewitness accounts, letters, speeches, journal entries, drawings, and photographs from the traumatic events and aftermath of the events of February 14, 2018. The book is filled with expressions of loss, a rally cry for change, and hope for a safe future. A large portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book go directly to Shine MSD, an organization formed by Parkland students that promotes healing through the arts. Parkland Speaks is currently being sold for $17.99 online and in bookstores across the nation. The volume is available on amazon here.

One of 14 therapy dogs brought in to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School to help students cope with last year’s mass shooting examines his portrait in the school’s yearbook. The portraits were the brainchild of yearbook adviser and teacher Sarah Lerner.

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.

 

Washington, DC’s, Dr. Lillian Lowery: Educator extraordinaire

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Lillian Lowery

Dr. Lillian Lowery: Educator extraordinaire

I love to share stories about teachers who have accomplished remarkable achievements over the course of their careers. One of these is English teacher Lillian Lowery: Educator extraordinaire. Originally from North Carolina, Lillian now hails from Washington, DC.

Lillian was born in Gastonia, Northampton County, North Carolina. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English from North Carolina Central University in Durham. She earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She completed the requirements for her Ph.D. in Education and Policy Studies from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Lillian inaugurated her teaching as a middle school English teacher at Gaston County Schools in Gastonia, North Carolina. Before long she relocated to Alexandria City Public Schools in Alexandria, Virginia, then on to Fairfax County Public Schools in Fairfax, Virigina, and then Fort Wayne Community School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. With each new position, Lillian expanded her experience as an educator, serving as a high school English teacher, an assistant principal, minority student achievement monitor, a principal, and an area coordinator.

In 2004, Lillian was appointed the Secretary of Education in Delaware, and then as the Superintendent of the Christina School District in Newark, Delaware. While living in that state, she also served as the Secretary of the Delaware Department of Education. Next she moved to Maryland, where she served as the Superintendent of the Maryland State Department of Education.

In September, 2015, Lillian became the first President and Chief Executive Officer of FutureReady Columbus, a non-profit organization specializing in early childhood education located in Columbus, Ohio. In March, 2017, she was appointed Vice President for PreK-12 Policy, Research, and Practice at Washington, DC’s The Education Trust, a national nonprofit organization working to identify and close opportunity and achievement gaps in K-12 education.

For her work as an educator, Lillian has earned many prestigious awards. In 2015, the National Association of State Boards of Education honored her as the “Policy Leader of the Year.” This honor is awarded annually to a national or state policymaker in recognition of his or her contributions to education. Lillian has also garnered the Second Mile Award from the University of Delaware; Wilmington, Delaware’s Junior Achievement Award; the City of Fairfax Mayor’s Service Award; and the Outstanding Service Award from the City of Fairfax School Board. Lillian has also served on several organizational boards including, Delaware State University, edreports.org, and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Dr. Lillian Lowery: Educator extraordinaire.