The names of nearly 200 educators across the country and throughout our nation’s history are now etched in granite at the National Memorial to Fallen Educators, which was re-dedicated as part of the National Teachers Hall of Fame induction activities Friday.
Eleven names were officially added to the memorial on Friday, including Jean Kirk Kuczka, a physical education teacher out of St. Louis who was killed in October. Her son, Joe, says teaching “was her passion” and her time on Earth was founded on one simple principle.
Teachers Hall of Fame Interim Deputy Director Ken Weaver says the memorial is both a “monument to remember the past…and a beacon shining into the future, across the nation, the centrality of school safety.”
Emporia Mayor Susan Brinkman says the event pays respects to education professionals who “shaped the minds of our children and left an indelible mark on our community and our nation.”
Kansas House 60th District Representative Mark Schreiber of Emporia focused his remarks on the word “purpose.”
US Senator Roger Marshall offered his condolences to family members of fallen educators.
Kansas native Lauren Mendoza, now the Deputy Assistant to the US Secretary of Education, says school safety is personal for her, having come from a family of teachers.
Kansas National Education Association President Sherri Schwanz says “great educators leave behind a legacy.”
National Education Association Secretary and Treasurer Noel Candelaria says teachers inspire those around them.
Longtime Teachers Hall of Fame director Carol Strickland, now the director emeritus, referenced the Sandy Hook school shooting that directly led to Emporia’s memorial, as well as the partnership that has developed between the communities since the 2014 shooting. She asked those attending and tuning in, either on KVOE or KVOE-TV at KVOE.com, to ask themselves “why.”
Reflecting the times, Emporia State Teachers College Interim Dean Sara Schwerdtfeger says ESU has increased its emphasis on trauma-informed practices.
The event also featured a special laying of roses and placing of a special wreath, as well as a tribute to fallen educators, administrators and support staffers.
Since the memorial was first dedicated in 2014 with the names of 113 fallen educators, administrators and support staffers — and the now-annual call to add no more names to the granite tablets — nearly 80 educators have died in the line of duty.
The ceremony highlights a busy last day of the induction process for this year’s class — Rebecca Hamilton of Riviera Beach, Florida; Eric Hueck of Miami, Florida; Caryn Long of Montverde, Florida; Kristen Record of Stratford, Connecticut; and Monica Washington of Texarkana, Texas. A new statue has already been dedicated at Emporia State’s one-room schoolhouse. The official induction banquet begins at 6 pm, with the formal ceremonies at 7:30 pm Friday, both at the Memorial Union Webb Hall.
Photos by Tagan Trahoon and Chuck Samples/KVOE NewsÂ
