The University of Tennessee tweeted out a tweet yesterday asking “what professor made a difference in your life?” That was easy — It’s Dr. Faye Julian.
Dr. Julian was my speech teacher my senior year. After the first test, she was handing out graded tests. When she put mine on my desk, it had a big red 95% on it. I was quite happy with that and then I caught her famous intense stare. She looked at me and said, “You can do better.”
I thought, “Who is this person? A 95% is pretty darn good.”
But you know what? I did do better.
I loved Dr. Julian. She believed in my talent before I did and pushed me accordingly. If you have ever heard me speak and liked it, thank her. I spoke at the Howard Baker Center at UT a few years ago and she came to hear me. She came up to me afterwards and said, “You’ve gotten better but here are a few things you need to polish up.” Always the teacher.
I saw her a year before she died. I had done a print for the College of Communications & Information featuring a party in Circle Park (near their building). Featured in it were the old Deans. Dr. Julian had been a dean after I left school, so I gave her a low number print. I asked her, “Was I your favorite student?” She said sharply, “No. You were my 2nd favorite student.”
A little hurt, I asked, “Who was?”
She grinned and said, “Peyton Manning.”
I can live with that.
The tweet got me thinking of all the teachers who I’ve had who shaped me, prodded me and believed in me. Miss Floyd (later Mrs. Eubanks) was from Mississippi and was my first grade teacher. She was wonderful. Mrs. Caylor was my third grade teacher and really encouraged my artwork. Mrs. Newman in 5th grade pushed me to be better. Miss Overstreet in high school taught me to think for myself. Miss Patterson picked me to be the cartoonist for the school paper (that worked out well). Mrs. Battle lit my love of history and politics. Coach Clouse taught me that if I work hard enough, I can do anything (chemistry) — I could go on all day.
If you are reading this and are a teacher, know this. Today, you made a difference in one of your student’s life. Hopefully for the best — if you have the passion, you probably did. You may never hear about it in a Facebook post 30 years later. But that kid has been changed and pushed in a better direction.
Dr. Julian died last year, but I still hear her voice frequently. When I am working on something and am not putting out 100%, I hear her say,”You can do better than that.”
And then I say, “Yes ma’am,” and get busy.
What teacher has made a difference in your life?
Mrs. Wallace Shuttleworth was my English teacher all four years in high school. No matter how hard I tried, my lowest average was in her class. She was a demanding teacher, but she was fair. She was also my counselor. I told her that if the only subject offered in college was English, I would never ever graduate. Three years later, I had to tell her that not only was I graduating with an English Deegee, but I was going to get my Masters in English. She had made me fall in love with Literature and grammar without my realizing it. I am now retired, but for forty years I was another student’s Mrs. Shuttleworth. I thought of her every time a former student of mine told me how they had aced Freshman or Sophomore English courses. I think she would be proud.
Ovid Vickers at east central community college, Decatur ms, isnone who made a difference in my life.
He cast me in leading roles in theater productions at eccc, then called a junior college.
That recognition gave me new confidence, and an identity that I didn’t have before then.
He was and is a joy to be around, as he approaches the late 80s.
If u ever get a chance to hear him speak, do it. He is a humorist of the first order and could have made a fortune as a speaker and entertainer if he had wanted money.
Instead, he invests in the lives of people he cares about.he is a published author, poet, philosopher and a great friend.
He has been, and still is, a positive influence on hundreds of people. He is one of my heroes.
Dr. Royce Ladner of Long Beach, MS. Taught Advanced English my senior year of high school — 1968-69. He was Mr. Ladner then, and we both ended up in same Shakespeare class at USM several years later, when he was working on his Ph.D. and I a mere junior! So much fun to go from student/teacher to student/student. One of my majors in college ended up being English and it was because of this gentle man. Always soft-spoken, I look back now and he reminds me of Mr. Rogers and his calm voice. I still remember his saying, “People! People! People!” to get our attention. He taught us many things but I will never forget his Five Fatal Errors in writing. Tried to teach those to law students years later when drafting their resumes!! He left us several years ago but will always be remembered kindly by many of his legions of students.