Hall honors new class of teachers

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By Joey Berlin

Originally published 01:01 p.m., April 22, 2008
Updated 01:01 p.m., April 22, 2008

The South is well-represented in the 2008 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame.

The hall of fame, founded in Emporia in 1989, has inducted 80 teachers from 33 states and the District of Columbia since its inaugural induction in 1992. This year, four of the five inductees teach in states south of the Mason-Dixon line, with one teacher from Wyoming rounding out the list. The inductees will travel to Emporia for a series of induction events on June 18-20.

“The committee evaluates the nominees on responses to questions regarding their professional profile, their teaching both inside and outside the classroom, educational issues and accountability,” Jenny Harder, the hall of fame’s director of induction and recognition, said in a news release.

The 2008 inductees are:

• Ronald J. Blanchard, an earth science teacher from Ray D. Molo Middle School in Lake Charles, La.

• Kathleen Faye Engle, a physical education teacher at Newcastle Middle School in Newcastle, Wyo.

• Penny B. Ferguson, an English teacher at Maryville High School in Maryville, Tenn.

• David Lazerson, a pre-kindergarten special education teacher and music director at the Quest Center in Hollywood, Fla.

• Suzanne Ransleben, who teaches standard and pre-advanced placement English at Carroll High School in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Biographies of each inductee will be posted at the National Teachers Hall of Fame Web site, www.nthf.org. Each educator’s career story will be immortalized in the hall of fame’s gallery.

The National Teachers Hall of Fame has honored elementary and secondary school since its inception in 1989. Nominees must be certified schoolteachers at public or nonpublic schools, active or retired, and must have at least 20 years’ experience teaching in grades pre-kindergarten through 12th grade.

The new members will also receive several gifts and mementos for their inductions, including $1,000 in educational materials from Pearson Education, a signet ring and lapel pin from Herff Jones Inc. and a $1,000 college scholarship for a student in their district who is pursuing a degree in teaching.