Paul Boers paid tribute to his kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Arnold, who reminded him that “everyone deserves to be treated with compassion and respect” — including the school’s janitor, whom Paul and his friends liked to call “Poopy John.”
Hannah Groff remembered Mrs. Miller, a fifth-grade teacher who gave her a start on stage (as Mrs. Filthyrich, a bossy, snobby woman) and a note to safeguard.Julie Weirich told of a high school teacher, Marilyn Graber, also known as Grabes, who was “my go-to teacher, my role model, my moral support, my cheerleader in life.”
In an assignment in Feature Writing during the spring semester, students wrote short essays about memorable former teachers.
The assignment, called “A Teacher’s Moment,” came with a format similar to that of the popular “This I Believe” essays for National Public Radio: 350-500 words that tell a story in a personal voice.
Lee Burdorf, program director for WVPE, the NPR affiliate for Michiana, selected three of the 11 essays for broadcast, one each week, during April. The essay by Weirich aired on April 14; by Boers, April 21; and by Groff, April 28. The essays can be heard in their entirety below.
