-Contributed about a college Instructional Design professor
Carl Graver
was my 7th grade Band teacher who included Music Appreciation and History as regular parts of actual band instrument training. He would bring to class his personal collection of records and play pieces to illustrate a specific sound or instrumentation or composer. He did not play favorites but instead exposed [the] class to a wide variety of classical to modern composers and how their music was "built" as sounds and techniques. He opened my head and heart to the "feeling and emotion" of music, as colors and shading andpositioning and scale are used in painting. He was honest in how he physically displayed his feelings for certain music as he played it. I still see his eyes closing and his whole being moving and appreciating the sounds with changing facial expressions as sadness,
exhilaration, passion, excitement,
knowledge and agreement swept his face at each unique phrase and sound. He was honest and unafraid to bare his passion and that was rare in that day in public education, and, in my experience, to date. He came to work every day in a suit and tie, always pressed and
fashionable and very presentable. I knew him for 2 years and he was consistently himself that entire time. He wanted every person in class to play great, even those like me who really had no natural talent, and he congratulated and praised every
small improvement. I love music in all its forms to this day and believe I owe my appreciation to Carl, who helped me open my head, heart and soul to the gift of this art in all its forms and from all its artists.
___
It was clear that
Rev. Dr. Louis
Brighton's
entire life was shaped by his subject matter (Theology). Quite simply, he lived what he taught, and waspassionate about conveying not only his encyclopedic knowledge, but also the "habitués" of his life to the students. Also, he was a genuine Kentucky colonel, string tie and all.
-Contributed about a college Exegetical Theology professor
Virgil Koch
was a political exile from Romania and former curator of the fine arts museum in Bucharest. He taught me that passion for one's work is as critical as skill. Most important to him was the concept of life-long learning and mastery across disciplines as well as crafts.-Contributed by Phylise Banner Klein about her mentor at work
His passion for his material was evident in all his lessons. He brought
new vitality
to subjects
that he had taught many times before and made it feel that, with us, he was experiencing it for the first time.-Contributed about a high school Humanities teacher
Mr. Hayes
was my 9th grade Algebra teacher. He had such a passion for Math that it was contagious. He made a rather dull subject come alive, so much so that I even joined the Math Team and competed against other schools. He was the best teacher I ever had and I will always remember him.-Contributed by Bonnie Barron Deering
Mr. Gates
was passionate, humorous, dedicated and committed.-Contributed about a middle school teacher
Sister Anasatia
was my 6th grade teacher. It was during the McCarthy era and her passion was contagious. I became aware of current events and life outside my little circle. She encouraged debate, which was fun. I would discuss topics with my father, whose opinions were very different from her view of the situation. I would bring my father's views back to the classroom and the debate would begin. I thought she was great because she allowed you to have an opinion: [she was] very different from the other nuns in the school.___
Maria Volante
[was] humorous and passionate about teaching.-Contributed about a high school English teacher
Believe it or not, my most memorable trainer is
Elliot Masie
. The year was 1983 or 1984 and I worked as aprogrammer for the Department of Public Welfare, Commonwealth of PA at
Norristown State Hospital. Mr. Masie presented a “train the trainer” in PC's and PC Software in Harrisburg, PA. He was exceptional, highly motivational and I still think about and use the concepts he taught us. Although I am not an official trainer, my job was a computer
programmer back then, and I have been a Network Admin for the last 7.5 years. I am called upon to disseminate information on applications frequently because I work alone and support the entire site for IT. A couple of years ago, my recollections prompted me to do a search on the Web and [I] got on this mailing list. I still work for the Commonwealth of PA. As a matter of fact I am retiring on June 17th. I'd like to go back to school and have been thinking about training as a second (third) career. Thanks for this opportunity to complement Mr. Masie.
___
Mr. Sanborn
was a high school Music teacher who really cared about what he was teaching us. He led us to be the #1 high school choir in the state of Michigan.Jo Shelton
taught as if her life depended on it: body and soul.-Contributed by Tim Baker about his high school Music/Art teacher