Memories from a lifetime in public education

The Education Task Force asked me to reflect on my career in education, mostly in Gettysburg. Let me start from the beginning. I began my teaching career at Binford Junior High School, Bloomington, Indiana, fresh out of college (Miami University, Oxford, Ohio) and newly married, in September 1959. I left in 1962 as I was pregnant and there was no such thing as maternity leave. One just lost your teaching position. In 1968 when our youngest child was in kindergarten, I went back to teach mathematics in grade 7 at the Gettysburg Junior High School. Later, I was part of the experimental teaching team which was the beginning of the middle school curriculum. I went to Shippensburg University in the evening and summers and graduated with a master’s degree in school administration in 1980 and a principal’s certification in 1981. I was appointed to the position of assistant principal in 1984 and in the spring of 1985 became the principal of the Gettysburg Junior High. The Junior High became an official Middle School on January 1, 1996. However, the ninth grade did not move to the High School or grade 6 to the Middle School until September 1996. Officially, I was the last principal of the Gettysburg Junior High School and the first principal of the Gettysburg Area Middle School. I set everything in motion for the change in the organizational plan and retired in June 1996.

As I look back on it, it is difficult to describe which position I preferred. I really enjoyed both. The classroom was very rewarding and a real period of growth for me as a teacher. It takes a few years to finally feel comfortable trying new methods and programs. One keeps growing with the students as their needs change over time. I think the most rewarding moment for any teacher is when you see that light bulb of understanding light up when the student finally understands a concept that he/she has been struggling with for a long time. I have great faith in our youth. Even though each generation thinks that the younger generation is a mess, year after year each generation proves that we are wrong.

When I was in high school, I was the only female taking senior math out of a class of 350. In college, I was informed that women do not belong in mathematics by my calculus professor. So, part of my motivation to become a principal was that I felt that the female students needed to experience a woman in a leadership position. At that time, there were no female principals and as far as I know there had never been a female principal of a secondary school in Gettysburg. I broke that glass-ceiling, but it wasn’t easy. There was a lot of apprehension about my ability to run a school. However, I think that I managed to convince them that women were quite capable of leadership positions. Today, there are seven principal/asst. principal positions in the Gettysburg Schools and three of them are held by women. I did miss the daily classroom interaction with students, but I was able to enjoy 900 students in many roles each day. Another joy was working with the faculty. An important part of that task was visiting classrooms and following up with a conference with the teacher. My first question at the evaluation conference was, “What do you think went really well with the class?” That was always a difficult question. It seems that it is just human nature to point out where things went wrong or really needed improvement but so difficult to talk positively about oneself. I hope that I was able over the years to address the positive dynamics of classroom teaching as well as working on one’s growth. I also felt strongly that one needs to be honest and caring for everyone. I would find it difficult today to not be able to kindly touch or hug a student. Sometimes, that is the only solution but not an option these days.

I knew that I wanted to be a mathematics teacher ever since I was in sixth grade in a 1-8 elementary school in Toledo, Ohio, my hometown. I was fortunate to have such a special teacher who made learning exciting and fun. To this day I am grateful to Mrs. Baker for lighting that spark in me which started me on my journey to teach. I just knew that I wanted to teach mathematics! I truly hope that everyone finds that special person some time in their life that makes the difference in their journey. Sometimes that person is an educator.

Carolyn Nunamaker is a long-time resident of Adams County. She lives near Gettysburg with her husband Norm. Carolyn is a member of the Education Task Force of the Gettysburg Democracy for America.