Educators work with inspiration

by Mary Le Arneal
posted 11/18/09

Teachers are known for dispensing wisdom to their students. But when a teacher needs a little wisdom, where do they go?

In celebration of American Education Week the Eagle asked the teachers of North Bend Central if they had any particular quote or saying that they used for inspiration.

Jim Havelka, who has been in education for 37 years, the last 11 as superintendent of NBCPS, has a favorite quote, “A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” -Henry Adams.

Terri Jelinek has been teaching 32 years, 22 of them in the math department at NBC. Her inspirational quote is “The object of education is to prepare the young to educate themselves throughout their lives.” -Robert M. Hutchins.

Melissa Cody has been teaching at North Bend Elementary since graduating from college in 2004. Her quote she uses for inspiration is “As a teacher I feel I have a moral obligation to help the children in my classroom grow toward becoming full human beings and to feel successful.”- Jean Medick.

Bob Feurer has taught 31 years, all at NBC. His quote is “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

“I’m becoming increasingly aware that the Midwest work ethic may be in jeopardy,” Feurer said. “Lots of people, adults as well as kids, groan about work. What do you want to do, text nonstop, Facebook till the cows come home and MySpace into the wee hours of the morning? Most of these things are taking up gigantic chunks of time and are not productive as I see. Read a book, have a family discussion or do a Bible study, volunteer somewhere! Heck, I almost believe watching TV might be more productive! Yeah, yeah, yeah- I’m old, but I can see the world going on without them and they get in the way of work.”

Diane Treat shares a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.”

Treat, who has taught 21 years, 18 of them at NBC, said that to her it means that people are “doers” and they are learning.

“We are dedicated to teaching students and helping them learn,” Treat said. “So if students make a mistake and they tried, failed, and then succeeded, it’s a wonderful accomplishment for them and for us.”

Dan Nelson has taught in the special education department and coached at NBC for 15 years. His favorite quote is, “To the world you might be one person but to one person you might be the world.”

Bev Grueber has a favorite saying in “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something!” She has taught 38 years, 32 of them in North Bend schools.

Ann Halladay has taught 33 years at NBC. She said she didn’t know if she had a particular education quote that she lives by, but did find an inspirational one from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character-- that is the goal of true education.”

Ray Kirkpatrick is in his first year as NBC’s band instructor, but he does have 23 years of teaching experience. He has many quotes that he uses and shares with students as situations lend themselves.

“I have something called the Three R’s that I have used for many years in both teaching and coaching,” Kirkpatrick said. “They stand for Respect, Responsibility and Resourcefulness. I try to teach and guide students with these three words in everything they do because they are not only good from an educational standpoint, but they are very applicable to life once they finish school.”

Chris Gross-Rhode thinks of the whole school year when looking for an inspirational quote after 19 years of teaching, 17 of them at NBC.

“One year,” Gross-Rhode said, “as the school year started I came upon a quote ‘Nothing great can be accomplished without enthusiasm.’ It applies to many things. I try to remember it when March rolls around and kids and teachers are tired and patience is running thin.”

Cec Hall has taught 31 years at NBC. She has numerous quotes that she likes to use to inspire her students. One is, “A room without books is like a body without a soul.”

One quote is particularly meaningful to Hall. She says it has kept her sane for 44 years of teaching and it is applicable to any place in life: “No one can ruin your day without your permission.”

Jan Hobza has been involved with students at NBC for many years while working in the office. Though not a teacher, Hobza feels she has touched the students’ lives.

Two philosophies that she has adopted are “Kids don’t care what I know, they know that I care” and “When it comes to kids, you can look for the best or look for the worst and you’ll find what you’re looking for.”

“Being in the office and often being the first ‘school’ person they see or interact with,” Hobza said, “I believe it doesn’t cost me a cent to smile and be positive and genuinely interested in our students.

“I can’t count the times I recall ‘watching’ certain students travel through their years at NBC. Remembering a timid seventh grader bringing in lunch money or asking for a make up slip, typing that same child’s name on honor roll or any other achievement they have earned athletically or academically, then watching them walk down the aisle to ‘Pomp & Circumstance.’ That’s what it’s all about and any portion of that student’s good time at NBC that I have been a part of makes me smile.”

<<Back to the archives page