Tag Archives: Language Arts Teachers

Teachers who specialized in Language Arts.

Minnette Gersh Lenier: Talented teacher and professional magician

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Minnette Gersh Lenier

Minnette Gersh Lenier, talented teacher and professional musician

Standing up in front of a classroom of students has often been compared to a theatrical performance. One teacher who would likely agree is Minnette Gersh Lenier, a talented teacher who also happened to be a professional magician.

Minnette was born on July 9, 1945, in Atlanta, Georgia. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from San Fernando Valley State College in 1967, and her Master’s degree at the University of Iowa the following year. In 1971, she completed the requirements for her Ph.D at the University of Southern California.

As an adult, Minnette became interested in magic, so much so that she studied the subject under acclaimed magician Jules Lenier. She was so good at the art form that she became one of the few female performing magicians to appear at the world-famous Magic Castle. Minnette and Jules were later married.

After earning her college degrees, Minnette worked as a reading specialist at Compton Community College, and as a consultant with the Los Angeles Unified School District. Later she joined the faculty at Los Angeles Pierce College in the San Fernando Valley. This gifted educator often used stage magic in her classroom to teach literacy, reading, and critical thinking skills. She performed various magic tricks using optical illusions for her students to evaluate, and then she would discuss with them how people can fooled. She encouraged students to try magic tricks and illusions at home so they could demonstrate that everyone is occasionally deceived by their eyes. She taught her students that although one can be fooled, that doesn’t mean one is stupid. Believing that learning magic is a mind-expanding activity, Minnette used the art form to teach both her remedial students and her gifted students.

Minnette was also a published academic. With colleague Janet Maker, she authored several books to improve literacy for college students. Among her titles are Keys to a Powerful Literacy (1993); Academic Reading with Active Critical Thinking (1996); College Reading with Active Critical Thinking (1997); and Keys to College Success (1998). Some of her volumes have been adapted into audiobooks.

Sadly, Minnette Lenier suffered a heart attack and passed away in her home in Woodland Hills, California, on February 7, 2011. She was 65 years old.

Margaret Clark Formby: Texas Teacher and Genuine Cowgirl

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Margaret Clark formby

Margaret Clark Formby: Texas teacher and genuine cowgirl.

Not many teachers can describe themselves as genuine cowgirls, but one who can is a Texas English teacher named Margaret Clark Formby. This remarkable educator is best-known for founding the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center in her home state of Texas.

Margaret was born in 1929 in Van Horn in Culberson County, Texas, a small town east of El Paso. She was the daughter of Fred and Mabel Clark, local ranchers. As a young woman, Margaret attended Van Horn High School, where she graduated in 1946, the salutatorian of her class. Following her high school graduation, Margaret enrolled at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. There she earned her Bachelor’s degree in English and Speech in 1950. After her college graduation, she accepted her first teaching position at Hereford High School in Hereford, Deaf Smith County, before relocating to a school in Fort Worth, Texas.

As a young woman growing up in a Western environment, Margaret believed it was important to have women recognized for their many contributions to Western culture. To this end, she founded the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center in Hereford. The museum was originally located in the basement of the local public library, but was later moved to a building in Fort Worth. Margaret also worked as the editor of Sidesaddle, the official magazine of the Cowgirl Hall of Fame.

In addition to cultural preservation, Margaret labored tirelessly to create better conditions for young people. She was one of two women in Texas who was named to a commission to investigate child pornography. She also served on a committee sponsored by the Texas House Speaker that researched teen pregnancy.

During her lifetime, Margaret earned many accolades for her work. In 1993, the talented educator was the first woman elected to Texas Tech University’s Rodeo Hall of Fame. In 2000, her name was added  to the list of “100 That Made a Difference: History Makers of the High Plains” by the Amarillo Globe News. She also received the Pioneer Woman Award from the American Cowboy Culture Society.

Margaret Formby passed away on April 10, 2003, at the age of 73. She will forever be remembered as a hardworking educator who worked tirelessly to preserve an important part of our Western heritage.

State Senator Joyce Elliott of Arkansas: High School teacher and champion of education

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Joyce Elliott

State Senator Joyce Elliott of Arkansas: High School teacher and champion of education

Many talented classroom teachers are also excellent politicians. One educator who exemplifies this is Joyce Ann Elliott, a high school teacher who has also served in both the House of Representatives and the State Senate for her home state of Arkansas.

Joyce Elliott was born in Willisville, Arkansas, on March 20, 1951. After her high school graduation, Joyce earned her Bachelor’s degree in English and Speech at Southern Arkansas University (1973). She earned her Master’s degree in English from Ouachita Baptist University (1981).

For more than 30 years, Joyce taught Advanced Placement and College Preparatory courses to high school juniors and seniors in Arkansas, Florida,
Minnesota, and Texas. Then she joined the College Board to focus on expanding access to Advanced Placement courses for under-represented groups of students.

From 2000 to 2006, Joyce served in the Arkansas House of Representatives. As a State Representative, she served on several committees, including those for Education and the Committee for Aging, Youth, and Families. In 2009, Joyce was elected to the Arkansas State Senate. Her responsibilities in the State Senate included her service as the Vice Chairperson of the Education Committee, the Chairperson of the Subcommittee on Educational Institutions, and a member of the Committee on Girls State. In addition, she played an integral role in funding and implementing a Pre-Kindergarten education program known as Arkansas Better Chance for School Success. As a former member of the American Federation of Teachers and the National Commission on Writing in America’s Schools and Colleges, Joyce also served on the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the College Board of Trustees, and the National Commission on the High School Senior Year.

For her outstanding work, Joyce has earned many awards. Her honors include being named one of the Ten Best Legislators of the 2003 General Assembly by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (2003); the Working Families Hero Award, the Arkansas Spirit Award, and the Arkansas Heroes Award for Peace and Justice by the Omni Center for Peace and Justice and Ecology (2005). She has also garnered the Humanitarian Award by the National Conference for Community and Justice (2006); the Legislative Friend of Children Award by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (2006); and the Pillar Award for Education by the Arkansas Chapter of 100 Black Men (2007).

To read more about this chalkboard champion, see her State Senate biography at Joyce Elliott. You can also view the YouTube video below where Senator Elliott shares her views about leadership.

High school English teacher Christine Marsh runs for Arizona State Senate

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Christine Marsh

High school English teacher Christine Marsh runs for Arizona State Senate.

In today’s highly-charged political climate, there are many opportunities for hardworking and civic-minded educators to make important changes that create improved classroom conditions. One educator who hopes to do this is Christine Marsh, a high school English teacher who is running for office in the Arizona State Senate.

Christine’s impressive career as an educator spans 26 years. For 24 years, she taught at Chaparral High School in the Scottsdale Unified School District. Her teaching assignment there included courses in Advanced Placement. She currently teaches at Cactus Shadows High School in the Cave Creek Unified School District. In 2016, this amazing educator was recognized as the Teacher of the Year by the Arizona Educational Foundation. Following her selection, she traveled to Washington, DC, to meet President Barack Obama.

If elected, Christine hopes to improve pay for classroom teachers in her state. “I’ve seen the impact systematic cuts to education have had on teachers and students,” Christine comments, observing that currently Arizona is next to the bottom in the nation for high school teacher salaries and at the bottom for elementary teacher salaries. “We lose a lot of teachers because of that, including really good ones who leave the profession and go do something that’s more lucrative, so they can sustain a family.”

Christine, who is running on the Democratic ticket, is hoping to oust Senator Kate Brophy McGee, the Republican incumbent who currently represents District 28. At present, Republicans control the Arizona State Senate by two seats. “I see an opportunity to flip the Senate, or at least create a tie,” she says.

Christine was raised in Scottsdale. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from UCLA in 1989, and her Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Administration from Grand Canyon University in 2016.

English teacher W. E. Blackhurst records West Virginia’s old-time timber industry

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Throughout American history, there are times when a talented educator will earn acclaim as an author and social commentator. Warren Elmer Blackhurst of West Virginia is just such an educator. His novels and nonfiction pieces record the old-time timber industry that flourished in West Virginia at the turn of the 20th century. In his day, he was also known as a conservationist and expert on local wildlife.

W. E. Blackhurst

W. E. Blackhurst, West Virginia educator and author

W. E. Blackhurst was born in Arbovale, Pocahontas County, West Virginia, on October 10, 1904. He was the seventh of eleven children born to Reverend Harry and Lula (Burner) Blackhurst. As a young boy, Warren attended Green Bank High School. Following his high school graduation, he earned his bachelor’s degree at Glenville State Teachers College.

Once he earned his degree, Warren returned to Green Bank High School, where he taught English and Latin from 1932 to 1964. His career as an educator spanned a total of 32 years. In addition, Warren developed and taught the state’s first class in environmental conservation. Every year, as part of the course, he supervised his seniors in planting five acres of seedlings in the Monongahela National Forest.

All his life, Warren collected and wrote stories West Virginia’s early days in the logging industry, conservation, and local wildlife. His work was published in many magazines and newspapers. He also published several novels retold stories of his home town of Cass and the history of the timber boom years in the Greenbrier Valley. The most acclaimed of his novels is Riders of the Flood (1954), which has been reworked into an outdoor play and is performed annually. Warren also wrote Sawdust In Your Eyes (1963), Of Men and A Mighty Mountain (1965), and Mixed Harvest (1970). A collection of poetry and prose entitled Afterglow was published posthumously in 1972. 

Warren passed away on October 5, 1970, in Cass, West Virginia. To learn more about this chalkboard champion, consult West Virginia Encyclopedia.