A MAGAZINE FOR EDUCATORS ACROSS VIRGINIA

PROMISE PARTNERS

March-April 2013www.VirginiaTeacherOnline.com

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Letter From the Editor

2

Education Center, which offerscourses for adults who are working to-ward their GED, as well as a citizen-ship curriculum and programs foradults with disabilities.

Dave Thomas’ level of success is veryunusual, especially for someone with-out a high school diploma. In fact, according to the U.S. Census Bureau,the average dropout can expect toearn an annual income of $20,241.That is over $10,000 less than the typical high school graduate and over$16,000 less than someone with abachelor’s degree. According to theDepartment of Education, dropoutsexperienced a poverty rate of 30.8while those with a bachelor’s degreehad a poverty rate of 13.5. The incar-ceration rate of dropouts is also ashocking statistic. Usually a dropoutends up exposed to socioeconomicforces that end up leading to a life ofcrime. Therefore, individuals that failto complete high school are 63 timesmore likely to end up in jail.

Dave Thomas realized his luck. Healso realized the importance of educa-tion. Completing his GED at the ageof 61 and developing The DaveThomas Education Center was his attempt to encourage students to stayin school and always strive forlifelong learning.

In this issue of Virginia Teacher you

will read about some local incentives

that are helping to increase on-time

graduation rates. Programs like

Regent University’s Promise Partners

(page 6) and organizations like

Richmond’s Higher Achievement

(page 12) have found solutions that

not only keep students in school, but

direct students toward the same goals

and the same high levels of achieve-

ment put forth by Dave Thomas. For

the same man that dropout of high

school and ended up running a multi-

million dollar restaurant business said

this:

“Get all the education you can. Who knows whatmore I could have achieved if I'd stayed in school and wentto college? The possibilities are endless when you have an education.”

Yours in Education,

Editor & Publisher

On November 15, 1969, Dave Thomas opened the first Wendy’s Old Fash-ioned Hamburgers restaurant inColumbus, Ohio. Today, Wendy’s isthe third-largest hamburger chain inthe world. Americans became very familiar with Dave Thomas throughhis long-running television commer-cials featuring himself. But what manypeople don’t realize is that this self-made multi-millionaire was a highschool drop-out.

Dave Thomas chose to quit school inorder to work full-time at the HobbyHouse Restaurant. As Wendy’s be-came successful and his name, faceand life story started to be well-known, Thomas worried that his success after dropping out would en-courage other kids to try to follow thesame path. So he returned to highschool and received his GED in 1993,at age 61. His graduating class votedhim “Most Likely to Succeed.” Hewent on to found the Dave Thomas

Guidance Counselors We LoveVirginia Teacher is currently looking for the best guidance counselors in Virginia to be featured in the May/June 2013cover story. Do you know a special guidance counselor thathas made a difference in the lives of the students at yourschool? Go to VirginiaTeacherOnline.com to submit his/hernomination.

MAGAZINE

4

ContributorsPublisher and Editor-in-ChiefDory Suttmiller

Production, Design and DistributionBreeger Media Group

WritersBrandy CentolanzaPaulin CheathmanBud Livers, PH.D.Mervyn Whighting, PH.D.

Mission StatementThe mission of Virginia Teacher Magazine is to inform and inspire educators in Virginia by providing current and relevant information on career development, educational enrichment and personal growth.

DisclaimerThe views and opinions of writers andcontributors that appear in VirginiaTeacher Magazine do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of VirginiaTeacher Magazine’s publisher, editor, staff and affiliates. The information inVirginia Teacher Magazine is provided as a service to the readers of VirginiaTeacher Magazine for information purposesonly. Virginia Teacher Magazine is notresponsible for problems arising out ofreference to the included material.Information on a commercial product orservice does not imply an endorsement byVirginia Teacher Magazine. Reproductionwithout permission is prohibited. Allphotographs are property of and credited to Virginia Teacher Magazine, unlessotherwise noted.

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PAULIN CHEATHAMPaulin Cheatham is a Public Relations and Advertising Specialist at Dominion and serves as the spokesman for thecompany’s environmental education program, Project Plant It!.He joined Dominion in 2007 as an Associate CommunicationsSpecialist at Surry Power Station in Surry, Va. Among other responsibilities in that capacity, he coordinated educationaloutreach activities with schools in Eastern Virginia. While

at Surry, he was a Boy Scout Nuclear Science Merit Badge Counselor. Cheatham holdsa bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Virginia.

MERVYN J. WIGHTING, PH.D.Mervyn, originally from the south of England, is a full professorin Regent University’s School of Education. He holds a Ph.D.from Old Dominion University and has taught in a variety of institutions in England and in Europe. Mervyn has lived in theUnited States for the past seventeen years, where he hasworked in public and independent K-12 schools as well as inhigher education. At Regent he has taught in the EducationalLeadership and Curriculum & Instruction programs, and heconducts research into different aspects of how a sense of community impacts thelearning process. Dr. Wighting is also the chair of the university’s award-wining CareerSwitcher program that is available online throughout the Commonwealth.

BUD LIVERS, PH.D.

Bud is the Emerging Technologies Coordinator for a NavyCommand in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and is a Senior Faculty member at the Cambridge College Regional Center in Chesapeake, Virginia, in the M.Ed., Special Education program. He taught students with an emotional disturbance at a regional public day school, andwas an Assistant Professor of Teacher Education atChowan University in North Carolina. He headed the JailsEducation Program in Virginia Beach, Virginia, tasked with

providing special education services for incarcerated youth and young adults. Bud received his Ph.D. in Educational Planning, Policy, and Leadership, with emphasis inSpecial Education Administration from The College of William & Mary, in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Table of ContentsPromise Partners 6Regent University works in partnership with Norfolk Public Schools to help reduce the dropout rates and increase on-time graduation rates.

Partners in Education 10Dominion’s Project Plant It!: helping elementary school students learn about trees and the environment.

Making the Grade 12Higher Achievement: a rigorous afterschool and summer academic program gives youth from at-risk communities their best opportunity to succeed.

Class Reunion 16Mary-Lyons Hanks: Lafayette High School, Class of 1992

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On the cover: Regent University’s Promise Partners

leaders Teresa Habib and Ryon Flack

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Good news from the Governor’s of-

fice in Richmond – the statewide

dropout rate fell to 6.5 percent for

the class of 2012, compared with

7.2 percent for the class of 2011! Dr.

Patricia I. Wright, Superintendent of

Public Instruction, gave rightful

credit to teachers and administrators

for the improvement in graduation

rates by saying, "The statewide

improvements we celebrate today

are the result of hundreds of

individual success stories involving

teachers, administrators and other

educators who provided struggling

and sometimes troubled students

with the instruction, support and

encouragement they needed to

persevere and complete their

diploma requirements."

Many schools are going above and

beyond to help at-risk students stay

in school. However, as school

districts across Virginia struggle

with continuing budget cuts, it is

often necessary to look outside the

school system for added resources

necessary to assist with the needs

of these students.

Regent University initiated the

Promise Partners project in the fall

of 2010 when it was learned that

the dropout rate in Norfolk Public

Schools (NPS) was higher than the

national average. Already in a for-

mal partnership with NPS through a

federal Transition to Teaching grant

for Career Switchers, Regent’s

By: Mervyn J. Wighting, Ph.D.

“Without question the most surprising fact for me was that these

young men and women were extremely knowledgeable,

persistent, and capable for their age. They were rather hesitant to

start with but by the end of the school year, they were eager to

debate with us and to present new ideas.”

high school. In the high school and

one middle school students were

involved in tutoring different

groups of children to help them

with their core subjects. In the

other middle school Promise Part-

ners teamed with Students in Free

Enterprise (SIFE) to conduct

entrepreneurial project with

children in grades 7 and 8.

The SIFE (now renamed Enactus)

team has participated in one of the

middle schools. Twice a week, a

team of four used a tailored curricu-

lum to teach children the basic

principles of business and entrepre-

neurialism. Oftentimes, classes

consisted of discussion where the

children presented their entrepre-

neurial ideas and explained a strategy

related to the topic. Other sessions

involved teaching commonly held

business principles. But the main

goal was to motivate the children

to think creatively ‘outside the

box’. The SIFE team believes this

style of education not only allows

students to apply what is being

taught, but challenges them to do

so innovatively – the trademark of

all successful entrepreneurs. In the

upcoming months, the team plans

to find effective ways of taking this

School of Education was able to

secure the support of NPS’ Human

Resources director and also the

division’s Director of Secondary

Education. Promise Partners is a

university-wide initiative to help

improve the dropout rate in NPS

through tutoring, mentoring, and

through entrepreneurial projects

involving undergraduate as well as

graduate level students. The title

Promise Partners is significant: the

Regent students promise to work

with NPS children in either a men-

toring or tutoring capacity, or

leading a community project. In

return the NPS children promise

to participate and to stay involved

in school activities.

PROMISING BEGINNINGSIn school year 2010/2011 approxi-

mately 50 volunteer students from

various schools in Regent University

worked with children in two high

schools and two middle schools in

NPS. At the end of that school year

it was concluded that more success

had been achieved in the middle

schools than with children from

grades 9-12. Consequently in

2011/12 the initiative focused on

two middle schools and just one

PROMISE PARTNERS:

Helping to Lower the Dropout Rate

and get a good start in life is a huge

bonus.

Graduate student Teresa Habib, a

Career Switcher who is transition-

ing into teaching after her first ca-

reer in the United States Marine

Corps has been tutoring in Norview

for two years. In the military she

VIRGINIA TEACHER MAGAZINE |MARCH • APRIL 2013 7

“All too frequently the children who are at greatest risk of

dropping out do not have a consistently caring adult in their

personal life.

application beyond the classroom

and making it a reality by establishing

ways to start small businesses with

the children taking a supervised,

active role. Ryon Flack, an under-

graduate at Regent has been involved

throughout the entrepreneurial

project. He has found that working

with children in an urban middle

school to be pleasantly rewarding:

“Without question the most surpris-

ing fact for me was that these young

men and women were extremely

knowledgeable, persistent, and

capable for their age. They were

rather hesitant to start with but by

the end of the school year, they

were eager to debate with us and

to present new ideas.”

PROMISES KEPTIn Norview High School the focus

has been more on tutoring. Often

this is conducted on a one to one

basis, which gives teenagers in the

GED prep class the undivided

attention of a caring adult. Conse-

quently the session can result in far

more than just an improvement in

the subject area. All too frequently

the children who are at greatest risk

of dropping out do not have a con-

sistently caring adult in their per-

sonal life. So to be sitting quietly

with an adult, week after week,

who not only cares about assisting

with math but who also cares

whether the children stay in school

saw firsthand how newly entered

(and sometimes troubled) youths

were transformed into confident

young adults in a short period of

time once they realized they were

in the company of people who

truly cared about them. Teresa has

transposed this into her tutoring.

She has found her voluntary work

in the high school to be necessary

and rewarding; a commitment to

community and caring. Each week

brings a new face and a new chal-

lenge. One week could be tutoring

algebra, the next week two teens

might need to study English com-

prehension. No matter the subject,

the time spent with these at-risk

teens reinforces a basic human

need to be appreciated. Showing

up each week is how Teresa confirms

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her commitment and dedication.

Once these teens pass their GED,

they are not left to their own devices.

They are welcomed to come back

to job-hunt via the classroom com-

puter, to get help applying for college,

or even just to talk. The principal

and staff at this high school wel-

come the intervention, and Teresa

feels honored to be a part of such a

caring community. Norview’s prin-

cipal, Dr. Majorie Stealey, sums it

up succinctly:

“Volunteers in this program are

providing valuable one to one

instruction as well as modeling

for success.”

PROMISING FUTURESSo, what effect does a project like

Promise Partners have on Norfolk

Public Schools’ dropout rate? NPS

saw its dropout rate dip to 10.7

percent in 2012, compared with

15.6 percent the previous year. In

an interview with the Virginian Pilot

on October 24, 2012, NPS’ Superin-

tendent Dr. Samuel King, noted

that the division has implemented

measures of its own to tackle

dropout rates, such as employing

dedicated attendance officials,

using a comprehensive database to

identify early on the students who

are most at risk, and adding a grad-

uation coach at each high school.

As part of the same interview Dr.

King stated, "It is our aspiration that

all of our students will graduate on

time and ready to attend college or

enter the workforce.”

From Regent University’s perspec-

tive, this kind of initiative provides

an excellent opportunity for its stu-

dents to serve the local community.

Irrespective of whether they are 21

year old undergraduates or sea-

soned graduate students transition-

ing into their second career, they

all bring maturity and their life

experiences into the public school

classroom to share with at-risk

youths. Dr. Paul Bonicelli, Regent’s

Executive Vice President believes it

“gives our students the chance to

be a positive role model as well as

actively assisting children with their

school studies. We are delighted to

be able to provide an outreach such

as this and we firmly believe it will

help convince some children that it

is worth staying in school because a

caring adult from the ‘real world

outside of school’ has instilled

some confidence in them.”

Would the Promise Partners model

between a school division and a

local university work in other parts

of Virginia? The jury is still out while

sufficient data are collected to ana-

lyze and identify what the most

successful interventions might be.

The real answer may lie in a combi-

nation of any and all measures that

a school division can introduce to

convince youths – especially those

who are identified as being at risk –

that some adults really do care about

them and that with help from these

adults they can become valuable

and valued members of society.

For more information on Promise

Partners, contact Dr. Mervyn Wight-

ing at (757) 352-4321 or

mervwig@regent.edu. VT

Regent Undergraduate Student Ryon Flack developing a business project

Regent Career Switcher Teresa Habib tutoring one to one.

VIRGINIA TEACHER MAGAZINE | MARCH • APRIL 2013 9

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DOMINION CULTIVATESLEARNING WITH PROJECTPLANT IT!For the seventh consecutive year,

Dominion’s Project Plant It! contin-

ues to blossom with new ways to

engage Virginia’s elementary stu-

dents in learning about trees and

the environment. Along the way,

the program has earned the presti-

gious Public Awareness of Trees

award from the Arbor Day Founda-

tion, as well as receiving an award

from the Virginia Association of

Science Teachers.

In January, teachers in participating

school systems received a kit of les-

son plans, posters, stickers and

other instructional tools to help

students learn about the important

role of trees in the ecosystem. All

of the materials align with state

learning standards for math, sci-

ence, language arts and social stud-

ies. A new lesson plan for 2013

helps students understand energy

sources and uses.

The cornerstone of the program is

the distribution of a redbud tree

seedling to each participating stu-

dent on Arbor Day, which falls on

April 26 in 2013. “This beautiful

tree species is native to Virginia,

and children will enjoy caring for it

and watching it grow,” said Paulin

Cheatham, spokesman for Domin-

ion’s Project Plant It!

More than 25,000 elementary chil-

dren across the Commonwealth

10

Partners in Education

are enrolled in Project Plant It! this

year. Since 2007, Project Plant It!

has distributed more than 160,000

tree seedlings to students in seven

states. According to the Virginia

Department of Forestry, this equates

to 400 acres of new forest if all of

the tree seedlings are planted and

grow to maturity.

The website,

www.projectplantit.com, features

videos and interactive games about

trees. Students can boost their

science vocabulary about trees and

plant life cycles by playing the

following games:

Timed Jigsaw PuzzlesThese interactive brain-benders

offer three tree puzzles with in-

creasing levels of difficulty. Kids

move the pieces by dragging them

to their proper place in the tree-

shaped puzzle while fighting the

clock. Each completed puzzle will

reveal facts about the tree being

created.

Leaf Identification andMemoryChildren can improve their mem-

ory while learning about the differ-

ent types of tree leaves through a

clever matching game. Cards that

are successfully matched will dis-

play a larger image of the leaf and a

short paragraph of information

about it.

Tree ID Which tree is the tallest? Which tree

is the youngest? What type of tree

thrives in Virginia? Which tree has

leaves of three? This interactive

game of identification will use

comparative images to teach

children how to recognize each

species of trees, as well as the

developmental stages of a tree.

By: Pauline Cheatham.

VIRGINIA TEACHER MAGAZINE | MARCH • APRIL 2013 11

There are many other features onthe website that will appeal toteachers around Virginia. On the“Teacher” tab, there’s a TeacherToolbox listing all of the materialsthat can be downloaded at nocharge. And don’t miss the “Get Active!” section with almost adozen ideas to get children out ofthe classroom for a personal encounter with Mother Nature.

Project Plant It! is provided by Dominion at no cost to schools.Ifyou teach in a school system thatisn’t enrolled in Project Plant It!,visit the website to order free treeseedlings for the classroom (whilesupplies last). Be sure to “Like”Project Plant It! on Facebook tosee stories and photos of studentswho are making a difference forthe environment.everywhere. Yourfellow teachers will likely appreciateyour invitation for input. And sowill your administration, which canhelp pave the way for a successfulVLM field trip experience.

You want the best for your students– that’s why you work so hard toget them to get them out on fieldtrips. So to maximize the profitfrom your field trip to the VLM aswell as other off-site educationalinstitutions … invest the time topre-visit the museum, and developyour own “Focus Guides” for yourstudents. Your efforts will definitelypay off.

Comments from Virginia Educators

“Each year, we closely evaluate allprograms that are offered to ourstudents and Project Plant It! continues to provide high qualityinstructional materials. The science lesson plans, for example,sharpen a student’s skills in

scientific observation and analysis. Also, the lesson plans emphasize 21st century skillssuch as communicating and collaborating in teams, whilebuilding a more global awarenessabout our environment.”Dr. Jean R. YoungSupervisor of Science for Spotsylvania County PublicSchoolsSpotsylvania, VA

“Thanks to everyone at Dominionfor working on behalf of our students to provide a successfultree planting event. Many of ourstudents will walk past the treesfor years to come and carry amemory of their part in placingthem there for all to enjoy.”Anne Richardson, Primary Science Lab TeacherCora Kelly Elementary SchoolAlexandria, VA VT

“Going to Nauticus was

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On the Downtown Norfolk Waterfront

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Plant It! Lesson Plans

� Know Your Tree Terminology

� Identify the Parts of a Tree

� Identify the Parts of a Leaf

� Tree-Tac-Toe

� Trees in Our World

� Math and Fractions in the Forest

� Tree Product Scavenger Hunt

� Tree Book Report

� Planting a Tree!

� Watch It Grow!

� Understanding Energy (NEW thisyear)

HIGHER ACHIEVEMENT

In the movie Stand and Deliver,

Jaime Escalante teaches math in a

barrio high school. Through a

combination of hard work, long

days, summer sessions, exceptional

motivation and personal mentor-

ing, Escalante helps his students

pass the advanced placement cal-

culus exam. Based on a true story,

this “formula teachers movie”

shows how Escalante had to work

with administrators and parents to

help his at-risk students achieve

superior academic results.

Not just the stuff of Hollywood

screen writers, such academic

successes are demonstrated

regularly by select middle school

students enrolled in Higher

Achievement. This rigorous after-

school and summer academic

program gives youth from at-risk

communities their best opportu-

nity to succeed in middle school —

and in life. The organization has

served more than 10,000 middle

school youth in the Washington,

DC area since 1975. Since then,

Higher Achievement centers have

opened in partnership with local

school divisions in Baltimore, MD,

Pittsburgh, PA, and Richmond. VA.

One of the greatest predictors of

college or career readiness is a stu-

dent’s academic achievement in

8th grade. Accordingly, Higher

Achievement focuses on that criti-

cal window of opportunity available

during the upper elementary and

middle school years.

12

Making the Grade

Higher Achievement Richmond,

held after school and during the

summer, operates two achievement

centers serving over 120 5th and

6th graders from schools in Rich-

mond’s Northside and Southside

neighborhoods (Henderson Middle

School and Boushall Middle School).

These are both Title I schools, with

90 percent of students eligible for

free and reduced-price meals.

Ninety-two percent of the student

populations are students of color,

and 36 percent of the families live

below the poverty line.

Supported by corporations and

private donations, Richmond Public

Schools provides bus transportation

for students at no cost. Students

are selected from neighborhood

elementary schools and must commit

to full participation in the program

during their entire middle school

years. In addition to high academic

standards, students work toward

high school placement with coun-

selors who help them research

various high school options.

By: Bud Livers

Raising Students to New Heights!

This rigorous after-school and summeracademic program gives youthfrom at-risk communities theirbest opportunity tosucceed in middleschool — and in life.

Mentoring

VIRGINIA TEACHER MAGAZINE |MARCH • APRIL 2013 13

When asked if there were plans to

expand the program into Hampton

Roads area schools, Higher

Achievement Richmond Executive

Director Eleanor Rouse Kootsey

stated that the current focus is in

growing each of the two existing

centers to scale (180 students per

center). Additionally, they are look-

ing to incorporate portions of the

existing program into existing

school division initiatives, vice de-

veloping full service programs.

The Challenge of the Middle The Middle School years are partic-

ularly challenging for many stu-

dents. In addition to significant

social and emotional changes, aca-

demic expectations rise. Grades

often plummet during the transi-

tion to, and throughout the Middle

School years. Students have an in-

creased likelihood of disengaging

from family and experimenting

with unhealthy behaviors, while de-

valuing education in general.

The challenges of middle school

are exacerbated in at-risk commu-

nities, where students are more

likely to lack quality schools, quality

out-of-school-time activities, and

positive role models — and where

they are more likely to be sur-

rounded by poverty, to encounter

violence and gangs in their neigh-

borhoods and schools, and to face

significant barriers to learning.

One of the greatestpredictors of collegeor career readiness is a student’s academic achieve-ment in 8th grade.

The Rigors of HigherAchievementHigher Achievement is certainly

rigorous. From 5th through 8th

grade, Higher Achievement scholars

spend 650 hours a year learning

an advanced curriculum that is

aligned to state standards. This

commitment is in addition to at-

tending school for the standard

900 hours a year. The program

costs about $4,500 per scholar

per year.

Higher Achievement’s year-round

program combines high expecta-

tions with high support —

demanding academic work plus

mentoring, skill-building, individual

student achievement plans, and

personal encouragement. Higher

Achievement is a three-phase

program.

14

■ Afterschool Academy includes

core subjects, such as litera-

ture and mathematics, as well

as seminars, artistic electives,

field trips, and opportunities

to engage in community serv-

ice. Higher Achievement Rich-

mond afterschool program

uses 140 unpaid volunteers, 2

hours per week, Oct-May, for

25 weeks.

■ The 6-week Summer Academy

includes coursework in litera-

ture, science, mathematics, so-

cial studies, and electives, as

well as a three-day trip to a col-

lege. Summer curriculum does

give exposure to what they will

learn the following year. By

partnering with teacher educa-

tion programs at nearby

universities, student-teacher

can apply their hours here toward

their required field work.

■ The final phase of the pro-

gram provides high schoolplacement services, designed to

help scholars advance to top

academic high schools. In

addition to helping scholars

identify schools that fit their

needs, Higher Achievement

helps them prepare for place-

ment tests, practice interview

skills, complete applications,

and identify resources for fi-

nancial assistance.

The Higher Achievement program

also includes special academic

events, including spelling bees,

student readings of their own

poetry, Olympics of the Mind, and

the Green Apple awards.

Federal Reserve field trip

VIRGINIA TEACHER MAGAZINE |MARCH • APRIL 2013 15

Achievements of HigherAchievementA study led by Dr. Leigh Linden

from The University of Texas at

Austin found that Higher Achieve-

ment’s program significantly in-

creases students’ reading and math

scores. Additionally, the findings

point to an increase in students’

desire to attend competitive high

schools.

On average, scholars who

complete the program:

■ Increase their GPAs at least

one letter grade.

■ Graduate with a B average.

■ Show improved attendance.

■ Demonstrate improved

attitudes and behaviors toward

their peers and adults.

During the years that Jaime

Escalante taught math at Garfield

High, hundreds of students passed

his math classes and achieved

more in life than ever thought

possible. Today Higher Achieve-

ment is helping tens of thousands

realize the same.

For further information about

Higher Achievement in Richmond

and how you might become in-

volved, please contact Eleanor

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VT

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What was your favorite schoolsubject?

Calculus was my favorite class be-cause I could see [in that class] howall of the math classes I had taken before were used. I liked the application of math in this class.

Who was your greatest influence?

My parents, Joyce and Larry Walk,were my biggest influences. Theywere both in education. My father isa retired Williamsburg-James CityCounty principal and my mother is a retired teacher. They are amazingeducators, but even more amazingparents.

What one thing did you learn inschool that has served you wellpost-graduation?

In school, I learned that it takes hardwork to achieve a goal, and that Iwould have to work for what Iwanted.

How did you decide on your career? What lead to your decision to return to LafayetteHigh School to work?

I always said I was never going to bea teacher. I watched how hard myparents worked for what seemed tome to be very little gain. But as I got

Class ReunionLAFAYETTE HIGHSCHOOLCLASS OF 1992

16

older I realized that what they didmade a difference. Teaching was ajob in which I could make a differ-ence. I really wanted to do that. Ibegan my teaching career in a differ-ent school, but after one year, myhusband and I moved back home toWilliamsburg, where we grew up.

What is it like being back atLafayette High School now as ateacher instead of as a student?

I really enjoy being back at Lafayetteas a teacher. The first year wasstrange, since there were severalteachers still teaching at Lafayettewho had been my teachers. It wasvery difficult to call these teachers,who were now my colleagues, bytheir first names. But, it was alsowonderful. All of the administrators I have had the chance to work withhave been amazing and all of theteachers I have taught with havebeen wonderful as well. We have an amazing staff and I am so blessedto be here.

What do you learn from your stu-dents today?

I learn so much from my studentsevery day. I learn a lot of patience.But I also learn to listen, to treat others as I would like to be treated,and to have compassion

By:Brandy Centolanza

Mary-Lyons HanksSessoms, Jr.MAYOR OF VIRGINIA BEACH

What advice do you offer currentstudents/the next generation?What advice do you offer for students who may want to headback into the classroom to teachone day?

My advice is to work hard to achieveyour goals. I want students to knowthat they can be successful, but theyare going to have to work to getthere. If a student wants to return tothe classroom, I would say make sureyou love what you are doing. Educa-tion is a difficult career path, but ifyou love what you are doing, it willshow in your teaching. VT

BIOGRAPHY:Mary-Lyons Hanks is a 1992 graduate ofLafayette High School in Williamsburg-James City County School Division.She earned a bachelor’s degree inmath from Virginia Tech and a master’sdegree in secondary education fromOld Dominion University. Mary-Lyonscurrently teaches geometry, probabilityand statistics and calculus at LafayetteHigh School, where she also serves assponsor of the math honor society. Shewas named WJCC’s High SchoolTeacher of the Year in 2012. When sheis not in the classroom, she enjoysspending time with her parents, Joyceand Larry Walk, her husband ChrisHanks, and their daughter, Lindsay.

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