Teachers make a Difference

 

Mrs. Dankowsky and Mr. Alstrum were my two favorite teachers. I had Mrs. Dankowsky for two years; 2nd and 3rd grade. She had done such a good job fixing my stutter in 2nd grade that my mom insisted she stay our teacher for the next year.  I'm the person in the center of the photo - 2nd row, 4th from our lovely teacher.

Mr. Alstrum was my civics teacher for my senior year. He left my high school 22 years later and then became a middle-grade teacher until he retired. We email each other about once a month and I asked him to read my middle-grade fantasy book based on my Cherokee ancestors and he said, “Thanks for letting me read Sleep Warrior. I enjoyed the complexity of the plot and was impressed with the depth and breadth of knowledge readers will gain from it, as well as its contemporary relevance. I’m overwhelmed by the creativity and research that is so evident!”  I'm trying to get it published and will probably get lots of rejection emails, but this comment means so much.  If you want to read it, just send me an email to sandi.jerome@gmail.com.

As I remember him in high school, he wasn’t one to hand out compliments; you’ll notice when he signed my yearbook that put quotes around "good" student and he mentioned “when you were there” because I cut class a lot. High school was easy for me and I easily got bored and preferred to read the text instead of sitting in class.  But his class was worth attending.  I went to OGHS in the 1970s. Escondido was a Republican stronghold and Richard Nixon had just taken office as President; serving the whole time while I was in high school.  In my senior year, as some of my male classmates worried about going to Vietnam, the debate about the war took center stage in our civics class.  

It was taught by these two amazing guys; Bill Rutledge Jr., and Stan Alstrum.  I was the photo editor for the yearbook and staged this photo because they were always "fighting." 

They moved back the partition between two classrooms and “team” taught two classes together.  I think it was a first for OGHS.  As you can see in this picture; Mr. Alstrum tended to be the more liberal guy (eschewing the tie) and Mr. Rutledge was the more conservative.  Mr. Rutledge was raised in a Navy home.  My best friend, Laura liked Mr. Rutledge best, having worked with him and the swim team. She was also raised like my husband in a conservative military family. We often had heated debates since she was raised Republican (Nixon) and my family was long-time farming/labor union Democrats (Kennedy.)

Mr. Alstrum was voted our favorite teacher by our class.  Partway through my senior year, I was already accepted at Cal Poly and all scholarships had been applied for.  I had enough credits to graduate, but some obscure school rule said I had to take a minimum of 4 classes my last semester.  When I complained to Mr. Alstrum, he suggested that I be his teacher’s assistant for period 4, which was his lunch hour.  This enabled me to get to work by 11AM and work the day shift at Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor to save money for college.

The debates offered by these two amazing teachers helped me see both sides; since I adored both of them.  To this day, I don’t take a liberal or conservative view of anything; instead, I use the skills these two guys taught me to investigate the full issue and then debate the pros can cons.    Sadly Mr. Rutledge died early in 1990 at 47 – with Mr. Alstrum as his friend to the end. 

Teachers truly make a difference in our lives and I hope they know how much we appreciate them!  I have an offer on YouTube for free books for teachers or other school employees.

https://youtu.be/mZKzqtWIzuk