We've all had at least
one teacher in our years of schooling that had an eternal effect on
us. Whether a second grade teacher who taught folk songs and read humorous
poetry, or a high school science teacher who convinced us we could get
a passing grade with just a little more effort (and then a little more,
and a little more), we all have our own memories of good teachers.
If you were raised in Davidson County [Tennessee],
a third grade teacher at a local grade school just might be one of those
favorite teachers of yours.
In a portable classroom at Union Hill Elementary,
walls covered with third graders' creations and autographed pictures
of recognizable visitors and guest speakers, Linda Jones is fulfilling
her life's mission: teaching.
Recently, the school system recognized her for
her mission, naming her Metro's teacher of the year. Unaccustomed to
the attention the award brought, she had nearly absorbed the excitement
when it got even better (or worse, depending on how you look at it).
Just after she was introduced to and lauded by the Goodlettsville Chamber
of Commerce (GCC) for being selected the county's teacher of the year,
Linda Jones was placed on a higher pedestal of recognition.
As Jones and Union Hill Elementary Principal Susan
Tarpy left the Chamber's monthly luncheon at Pleasant Green Park's pool
house in March, GCC Education Committee Chairman Bill Chaney chased
them down. He informed them that Jones had just been selected regional
teacher of the year.
That means she's up for Tennessee's teacher of
the year. There are six regional finalists in Tennessee (interviews
for the state award are from May 7 to 9). The finalist will be the teacher
of the year for 1999.
"The winner will be announced at a big banquet
in October," Jones said.
Jones has been a teacher for 26 years, teaching
mostly third and fourth graders. She came to Union Hill ten years ago.
"The first school I worked at in Metro was Jordonia. It was very
small. They closed it up and I went to Belshire," Jones said.
Simply ready for a change, Jones discovered an
opening at Union Hill in 1988. "I love the area. I just love it,"
she said. And, she added, "There are not a lot of small schools
left."
Union Hill, a classic-looking little brick school
building deep in a rural area, is expected to close its doors in the
next few years, as consolidation efforts in the Metro school system
progress.
Jones knew what she wanted to do in her own grade
school years. Said she, "I can remember walking down Gallatin Road
when I was in the sixth grade. I remember the very spot I was on when
I decided I wanted to be a school teacher. Because I just loved school.
I didn't miss school for anything." She added, with satisfaction,
"I'm doing exactly what I've always wanted to do."
She can follow many former students' progress
through their siblings. "Since it is a small school, most every
year I have younger brothers and sisters of old students," she
said.
Recently, after seeing a news report on Jones'
Metro award, a former student who now attends MTSU called her. "I
did remember her," Jones said. "She said to me, 'I just wanted
to tell you congratulations. If anyone deserved it, you did.' She said
I was her favorite teacher in grade school" -- who the former student
could remember, Jones noted modestly. "It really meant a lot that
someone at that age would remember their old teachers."
She also received a card from her own fourth grade
teacher. Former principals, too, sent notice of their congratulations.
There are some things Jones admited she does wish
were a little different. "The core curriculum has really changed
things," she said. "We haven't had a lot of time to do the
extra things that I'd like to do with the kids. I'm not really having
fun. And if I'm not having fun, the kids aren't."
Jones is, however, philosophical about the educational
process. "One of my professors, when I was getting my master's,
told me, 'You don't have to know all the answers. Just know where to
get them or who to ask.' I've remembered that."
"I am the teacher," she said, "but
I'm not. I learn from the kids. And I've learned a lot from other teachers
-- I feel very fortunate."
Her dedication is evident in her tone. "I
stay late, come in early," she said. As for the award, "It's
not for Linda Jones," she claimed. "It's for all those teachers
who work on the weekends, who bring loads of work home with them, who
spend money out of their own pocket to buy extra things."
Jones is modest about the honor. "This was
not something I had in mind," she confided. "I feel so special,
so overwhelmed."
Sitting across from her, my six foot frame squeezed
into a seat that otherwise would hold a sprightly third grader, I could
sense her sincerity.
It's Jones' modesty and hard work -- and those
like her, of course -- that earns more than any governmental recognition
could offer. It's memories of caring teachers, like Jones, that children
hold onto long after they leave the classroom.