Five teachers across the country just got a surprise A-plus.
The National Teachers Hall of Fame announced its 2007 inductees today. The group includes the first-ever selection for Nevada, as well as the sixth Kansas teacher to be inducted. The Emporia induction ceremonies will take place from June 14 through June 16.
The members of the 2007 class are Norman Dale Conard of Uniontown; Edna Loveday Rogers of Sevierville, Tenn.; Geri Rohlff, of Auburn, Wash.; John Snyder of Las Vegas and Joseph W. Underwood of Davie, Fla.
Conard teaches social studies and video production at Uniontown High School in southeast Kansas. He has taught for 29 years, including nine years in Los Angeles. His many honors include a 2000 USA Today Award and the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Education in 2004. He was state teacher of the year in 1992.
“Mr. Conard has a special presence when he walks into a room,” former student Megan Stewart-Felt told the Hall of fame. “His passion for life can be felt.”
Rogers teaches kindergarten at Sevierville Primary School in Sevierville, Tenn. A 33-year teacher, she is the third Hall of Fame member to come from Tennessee. Among many other awards, she received the governor’s Outstanding Tennesseean Award in 1989, a Presidential Award for Excellence in science and math, and a 1999 Friend of Education Award from the Tennessee Education Association.
“Edna wants all children to dream more, learn more, care more and be more ... and so do I,” wrote Dolly Parton — yes, that Dolly Parton — in a supporting statement to the Hall.
Rohlff has taught for 31 years, the last 17 of those in Auburn, Wash. She is presently a language arts, study skills and alternative education teacher at Auburn Riverside High School. She is only the second Hall of Famer from Washington, following Harlan Kredit last year. Rohlff received the 1993 Christa McAuliffe Award for Excellence in Education. Her honors also include being named the 2004 Wal-Mart Washington State Teacher of the Year.
“Mrs. Rohlff’s refusal to accept students dropping out as a viable option has encouraged countless discouraged students from leaving school,” her superintendent Linda Cowan told the Hall of Fame.
Snyder is a high school computer science teacher for Advanced Technologies Academy in Las Vegas. He has taught for 36 years, including nine years in North Dakota and one year in Wichita before coming to Nevada. He was Nevada State Teacher of the Year in 1990 and has also been a Christa McAuliffe Fellow in 1994 and 1997 among several other honors. His most recent award was a Get Excited About Education grant from Citibank last year.
“What better teacher can you ask for than one that pushes you to beyond even their expectations?” former student Aaron Eastburg told the Hall of Fame.
Underwood is the junior member of the class with only 21 years in teaching, all of it at Miami Senior High School in Miami, Fla., where he currently teaches television and moviemaking. He is the eighth Floridian in the Hall. Underwood’s honors include a 2004 Disney Award and a 2005 USA Today Award. He was named to the Disney Teacher Awards national selection committee in 2006.
“When I graduated from high school, I was ready for the workforce, for college and for life because of Joe Underwood,” former student Daniel Davila told the Hall.
Hall of Fame members get a $1,000 scholarship for a student in their district who is interested in teaching, $1,000 in educational materials and a signet ring and lapel pin.
To be nominated, a teacher must be a certified teacher with at least 20 years experience in K-12 teaching. Public and private school teachers are eligible.
On the Net:
National Teachers Hall of Fame: www.nthf.org