To all of the Hayward educators,
Be strong. We have come a long way. We have a long way to go. Wake up tomorrow with the thought that you will be on a line with your peers, your colleagues, your friends. Now is the time that we must unite and become one force. We are standing on that line for what we have earned. We are standing on that line for what is right. We are standing on that line, not only for our benefit, but for the benefit of the legions of educators that will come after us. You are taking a stand and will be making an indelible mark.
Get some sleep.
Paulette
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2 comments:
Thank you for your inspiring words.
Here are the links to today's news reports for those who can't sleep:
Channel 2
http://www.ktvu.com/video/11522599/
index.html?source=
Channel 4
http://www.kron4.com/Global/
story.asp?S=6328160
Channel 5
http://cbs5.com/education/
local_story_093152246.html
Channel 7
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/
story?section=education&id=5184348
Channel 11
http://video.nbc11.com/player/?id=88218
Thanks Paulette. Thanks Sara.
I will get a few hours of sleep and then I will be at HEA at 6:00 AM to get Eden Gardens' supplies.
This is my third strike in Hayward and I do not relish it.
It is times like these when I think of my commitment to teaching, and my commitment to Hayward.
My father, who passed away in the 1980's continues to be my hero. He fought for America in two wars, as many of his generation gallantly did. From him I inherited a belief in America as a land of liberty, justice, and righteousness.
My father was proud of his son, the teacher. He valued my contribution to our society and even today this heightens my feelings about the worth of my profession.
I teach, because I care about my students. I want them to be able to make their dreams come true. And in doing so, they will be living out the promise of America.
I am a teacher and I am proud of it.
Hayward is my home. My family moved to Hayward when I was seven years old. Starting in second grade, I attended Schafer Park, Gansberger, Mohrland, and Argonaut elementary schools. Rancho Arroyo Junior High School and Mt. Eden High School were my middle and secondary schools.
I met Ruth Gansberger, who had taught for forty years at Mt. Eden Elementary School. She visited the second graders at the school named for her. I fell in love with my second grade teacher, Nona Kirk, who went on to teach special education for Alameda County into the 1980’s. Lee Hartman read Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach to my class and hers when I was a third grader. Angie Rutigliano, my fifth grade teacher, gave me Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn at the end of the emotional day in June when we helped her pack for her move back to her hometown of Fresno. I watched my seventh grade science teacher, Phil Gordon, show off his mycological collection on his dad’s weekly science show on Bay Area television. My son was also privileged to call Mr. Gordon his teacher some twenty years later. Judith Kim Rothans inspired me to write at Mt. Eden High. Toby Spessard advised our student government and was a role model. Dorothy Mullin helped me to regain my spirit and was a positive force in the lives of thousands of students throughout her career, including my daugher, Jennifer. I never took a test in college that was tougher than any one of Marilyn Geiss’ physiology tests. Marvin Hokom challenged me with algebra and made it fun. My youngest daughter, Jocelyn, was also honored to have Ms. Geiss and Mr. Hokom as her teachers. No one cared more about us than our counselor/history teacher, Barry Gilbert. Susan Solsby helped us save a small plot of land at Mt. Eden from being paved over. It is still grass and trees for the students to enjoy today. It made the school better and connected us to the first widely celebrated April Earth Days.
My dad and my teachers are my heroes.
We all contribute to make our country and world better in our own ways. I choose to be a teacher in Hayward, because I am a product of Hayward’s finest. I choose to be a teacher in Hayward, because I want my students to be capable of realizing their dreams; to have fulfilling lives giving back to Hayward and the planet. I choose to be a teacher in Hayward, because I care about my home.
It is times like these, when my commitment to teaching in Hayward is undervalued by the very people who should be rewarding it, that I dig in my heels, raise my sign high, and walk the picket line.
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