Honor Your Favorite

By Leslie Mills PAGE President

According to Wikipedia, a teacher rooms who do not like school, and it is (also called a schoolteacher) is our responsibility as educators to engage someone who provides educa- these students.” As a young teacher, I just tion for pupils (children) and students could not imagine someone not liking (adults). It is the second school. Hence, I began a part of this definition journey with Shelly that that really made me would last more than 30 think. There are two years—a journey that “teachers” in my adult fulfilled my need to learn life who helped me new ways to engage the become the educator that students in my classI am today: one is Shelly room. Not only would Smith and the other is Shelly teach me about Susan Halligan. Both of new engagement stratethese First District RESA gies, she would conduct consultants have had a follow-up observations in profound impact on my my classroom, coaching life and the lives of thou- me in becoming a better sands of other educators teacher. She would have in southeast Georgia. Leslie Mills one-on-one conversa-

I attended Chatham tions with me, cheering County Schools from me on and encouraging me 1959–1971 during a time of when I had new ideas of “neighborhood schools” and things that I wanted to try in received a wonderful educa- my classroom. Shelly would tion. The teachers I had in always listen, even when no Chatham County motivated one else would. I may never me and inspired me to be a become the caliber of educalife-long learner. Then I went tor that Shelly Smith exemplito Georgia Southern College to study secondary mathShelly Smith fies, but I am a much better educator today because I had ematics education. While in the opportunity to make this college, it seemed that the long journey in education world changed. Students in with her. my classroom during the While Shelly was guiding late 1970s were not at all like me in Student Engagement, the students who had been Effective Teaching Strategies, in my classes growing up in Teaching Reading and Chatham County. Writing in the Content Area,

I will never forget an and Higher Order Thinking after-school professional Susan Halligan Skills, Susan Halligan was learning experience conducted by Shelly always there to guide me in the teaching Smith in the late 1970s. Shelly reminded of mathematics in both my professional us that probably everyone in that room and personal lives. I will never forget liked going to school, and that was why when my son Jason was in second grade every day since we were 5 years old, we and his teacher called me to tell me that continued to get up and go to school Jason “just could not subtract.“ Being a every day. Then came the daunting high school math teacher, I was devaswords, “There are students in your class- tated that my child could not subtract. Jason had a traumatic brain injury when he was 3 years old and had many of the characteristics of a child who had a learning disability in math. After working with Jason on traditional methods of subtraction to no avail, I made the phone call to Susan Halligan. She offered me strategies for Jason that he still uses today. Throughout my teaching career, Susan has been there for me, teaching me mathematical pedagogy. After every professional learning session that Susan taught, I would leave having a renewed feeling that I could teach math with the intent that all students could learn.

After nearly 30 years as a classroom teacher, Susan and Shelly encouraged me to consider becoming a First District RESA mathematics consultant. As a RESA consultant, I always looked forward to staff meetings when I knew that one of them would be teaching. With Susan and Shelly, teaching and learning never stopped.

When my husband became a laterin-life educator, he had the opportunity to spend a week of professional learning with Shelly and Susan before entering the classroom. Susan mentored him throughout his early years as a math teacher. This grounded him to become a teacher who would make a difference in the lives of many children. Susan and Shelly have both retired as full-time educators, but their influences can still be seen throughout the 18 school districts in the First District RESA area and in the classrooms where teachers had the opportunity to learn new ways to teach their students through professional learning conducted by Shelly and Susan. Both of these ladies were truly teachers of teachers!

Susan and Shelly had a tremendous impact on my life as an educator, and they have had an impact on my family as well. Not only have I had the opportunity to call Susan and Shelly my colleagues, but I am also proud to call them my favorite teachers. n