Possibly the ONLY picture I have of myself in Mrs. Manifold's classroom. Not sure why my friend is wearing the jester hat... maybe we were studying Shakespeare. As I think back on my youth, I like to brand myself a smart, plucky go-getter. My family had always encouraged me to strive for a college education and reach for a middle-class lifestyle. I could see so clearly where I wanted to be. The problem was, I didn’t have the road map to get from Yuma, Ariz. to [insert place where my potential could be realized, maybe Los Angeles? My world was pretty small back then.]
That’s why so many of my early mentors and advocates were teachers. Mrs. Manifold stands head and shoulders above the rest. I’ve tried to think back to the made-for-tv moment where Mrs. Manifold changes the projection of my life. But there is no ‘Stand and Deliver’ moment, there is no lighting in a bottle, no one specific ‘A-ha” story that I can remember. Instead what Mrs. Manifold did, through various years, activities and experiences is help me build a roadmap to my success.
‘Go get a job’ is good advice. You know what’s even better, ‘here’s how to write a resume.’ Platitudes about a college education are motivational. But they were no match for Mrs. Manifold’s correction pen helping me craft my admissions essay, edit after edit.
‘You can be anything you want to be’ is too broad. Mrs. Manifold brining in a radio journalist as a guest speaker made me say ‘I want to do that.*’
I first met Mrs. Manifold my sophomore year in English Honors II. That’s also the year I got a special waiver to take a Journalism elective even though it was only offered to Juniors & Seniors. I took that Journalism elective until I left for Northern Arizona University to study… journalism. The foundation Mrs. Manifold provided (along with a little pile of clips) opened the door to a job at The Lumberjack (which was, at the time, an independent student newspaper, so yes there was a paycheck involved, not class credit.)
An extended family of engineers, and more engineers, expected me to study something commiserate with my talents, like Law. Mrs. Manifold gave me the encouragement to stick with Journalism. It created the foundation allowing me to springboard into a successful communications career.
It’s strange to think of an alternate universe where Mrs. Manifold doesn’t teach at Cibola High School, and somehow I become some sort of disaffected lawyer.
It breaks my heart when teachers get villainized, because they do so much to mold our future. They get to see the raw potential and aspiration in students. And, like Mrs. Manifold, they are able to create the action plan, the execution allowing a child’s dream to become reality.
Thank you Mrs. Manifold for helping me write the first chapter in my success story, and for the the countless success stories you continue to help write.
* My first career goal was radio, but I need up studying Print journalism instead. The reason for the switch is a good story I’ll have to share one of these days.
That’s why so many of my early mentors and advocates were teachers. Mrs. Manifold stands head and shoulders above the rest. I’ve tried to think back to the made-for-tv moment where Mrs. Manifold changes the projection of my life. But there is no ‘Stand and Deliver’ moment, there is no lighting in a bottle, no one specific ‘A-ha” story that I can remember. Instead what Mrs. Manifold did, through various years, activities and experiences is help me build a roadmap to my success.
‘Go get a job’ is good advice. You know what’s even better, ‘here’s how to write a resume.’ Platitudes about a college education are motivational. But they were no match for Mrs. Manifold’s correction pen helping me craft my admissions essay, edit after edit.
‘You can be anything you want to be’ is too broad. Mrs. Manifold brining in a radio journalist as a guest speaker made me say ‘I want to do that.*’
I first met Mrs. Manifold my sophomore year in English Honors II. That’s also the year I got a special waiver to take a Journalism elective even though it was only offered to Juniors & Seniors. I took that Journalism elective until I left for Northern Arizona University to study… journalism. The foundation Mrs. Manifold provided (along with a little pile of clips) opened the door to a job at The Lumberjack (which was, at the time, an independent student newspaper, so yes there was a paycheck involved, not class credit.)
An extended family of engineers, and more engineers, expected me to study something commiserate with my talents, like Law. Mrs. Manifold gave me the encouragement to stick with Journalism. It created the foundation allowing me to springboard into a successful communications career.
It’s strange to think of an alternate universe where Mrs. Manifold doesn’t teach at Cibola High School, and somehow I become some sort of disaffected lawyer.
It breaks my heart when teachers get villainized, because they do so much to mold our future. They get to see the raw potential and aspiration in students. And, like Mrs. Manifold, they are able to create the action plan, the execution allowing a child’s dream to become reality.
Thank you Mrs. Manifold for helping me write the first chapter in my success story, and for the the countless success stories you continue to help write.
* My first career goal was radio, but I need up studying Print journalism instead. The reason for the switch is a good story I’ll have to share one of these days.