By Bill E.
I retired from the Navy after 30 years as a Captain, USN. The highlights of my career were three years in command at sea and a two-year tour in Madrid, Spain to work with the Spanish Navy in their ship-building program. They were building the same ships I had just commanded. I managed to parley the tour into four and a half years. The Navy lost me! My wife Jinny and I loved Spain, and we took full advantage of those years.
I returned as a program manager for four years of the largest non-shipbuilding program in the Navy. When I retired, I received many lucrative offers for employment, which I turned down. They wanted my contacts, not me.
My decision to teach was the dream job for me. I chose Arlington, VA, because they had three high schools and a number of middle schools. Also, we purchased a condo in Crystal City and Jinny worked at [Medstar] Georgetown University Hospital. When I retired, I had two master’s degrees in Oceanography and Systems Management. I needed a master’s degree in education which I received from Marymount University in Arlington.
I attended a job fair for teachers in Arlington. Filled out all the paperwork and was eventually offered employment in one high school and three middle schools. I interviewed all with my lesson plans and what I thought experience would bring to the classroom. They seemed enthusiastic about a male teacher. I never received a call back from the schools.
A friend I knew in the school system heard of my tale of woe, called me and told me why. The lady in charge of hiring in Arlington had had a bad experience with a retired Air Force officer and vowed no military veterans would teach in Arlington schools. She also told me she had made an appointment for me to see Dr. Marie Gawaddi the principal of Wakefield High School. When I asked her how this was different, she said just go and you’ll see.
I arrived the next day in Dr. Gawaddi’s office. There were three assistant principals, a guidance counselor and the math department head. I gave the full routine I had done before and when I finished, I told Dr. Gawaddi that this was my last interview in Arlington. She thanked me and said I would hear shortly about the position. My friend called me the same day and said I got the position and should be at the school tomorrow to sign and get my room.
When I got to Wakefield the next day the office secretary told me my room was at the end of the hall. When I arrived, I was in the manual arts section and my room had no desk or chairs, no file cabinets and only seven desks. I went back to the office and asked how to get furniture for my room. The secretary said to fill out a request form. I then asked where the custodian’s office was. She told me.
Eddie’s room was in the basement to the right of the hall. I knocked on the door and went in to introduce myself as a new teacher who needed some help.
Eddie said you look pretty old to be a new teacher. I told him I spent 30 years in the Navy. He responded, “Navy? My son is in the Navy. Were you ever in Norfolk?” I said, “Yes, three times – two on ships and one on staff.
I asked Eddie what his son did. He replied that he was a machinist mate 2nd class. I said that’s a great rate and I hope he likes it. Eddie said he loves it and is doing quite well. Then Eddie asked, “How can I help you?” I told him my sad tale and he said that room is nowhere near the math department. I realized that and he said, “I think I know why. Come in tomorrow and you will be all set.”
I went back to my classroom and introduced myself to my neighbor across the hall. He told me I was here because the math department head was terrified that because of my age and experience, I would take his job. I told him I wasn’t interested in his job – all I want to do is teach students in the classroom. He said, “You know that, and I know that, but he will never believe it.”
The next morning when I came into my classroom there was a desk, two chairs, two file cabinets, 24 desks, an American Flag and a Virginia flag. Additionally, the desk had all the necessary supplies.
The first year went well and the kids were pleased. After speaking to Dr. Gawaddi, I got a room on the second floor in the middle of the math department.
Before the year started, she got a group of teachers together to see what we could do about the incoming freshmen class. They were getting lost in the new environment of high school, and we needed a plan to help.
Our group met and came up with a brand-new idea. We would form three “Houses,” each with an English teacher, a math teacher, a history teacher, a science teacher and a social studies teacher. The Houses would accept all the incoming freshmen. Additionally, I got approval of a two-hour class period. That meant we would need our own bell schedule. We had created a “School within a School” – way ahead of our time.
Another requirement was that each student pick a topic to work on during the school year and then make a presentation to the school board at the end of the year. At the end of each year, I received cards and letters from parents thanking me for their son or daughter understanding the importance of math, enjoying it and doing quite well.
Our experiment was an overwhelming success and was continued for three years until the “Standards of Learning” were implanted in Virginia in 1996 and “teach to the test” became the standard. Our program went out of use and was never recovered. I left at the end of the year after four very happy and fruitful years.
School Days
The first year went well and I was pleased with the students. The first thing I had to do was assure them that being old didn’t mean I was a substitute teacher but would be with them all year. I took the approach of math as a second language with a vocabulary and symbols. For my pre-algebra students, I reminded them that “fractions are our friends”. I had all the desks removed from the room and replaced with four-person tables (Eddie was a big help). That way they could work in small groups and solve problems.
The classroom became an exciting place and a good learning center. The results of the year end proved to be excellent. I was touched when the class had a new name tag for me, “BOB” (Big, Old and Bold).