Teachers Are Everywhere, and Should Be

My mom, a retired librarian, told me last night that one of her oldest friends is not talking to her right now. My first thought was, what did you do?

My mom, a retired librarian, told me last night that one of her oldest friends is not talking to her right now. My first thought was, what did you do? She told me during the course of their conversation the subject of teachers came up, and my mother, being the outspoken woman that she is, said what she thought when the friend disparaged teachers. I imagine it wasn’t pretty, but my old lady did have a point: If you don’t prep your children to learn, don’t take an active role in promoting the value of education, if teachers fail to teach your children, it could be partly your fault.

Obviously the point is not to cast blame or to be overly harsh when one’s friends state an opinion, but it’s something to think about – the important role teachers play in prepping kids for success in the workplace.

Freeman Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, gave the opening keynote on day two of the SHRM diversity conference, and he discussed that very idea. He said if parents don’t instill respect for teachers, for education, they are doing their children a disservice given the value of education and the key place it has in prepping young adults for success later in life.

I’ve never attended one of his classes, but I believe just by the energy he was able to generate in the room, and the inspiration he was able to generate within me, that Hrabowski is truly a great educator.