Truman was nominated in October for Teacher of the Year District #13 by VFW Post 12118 in Copperopolis. She was chosen as the winner for District 13 and her nomination papers were then sent to compete at a state level. Of 328 VFW Posts in the State of California, Jennifer Truman was chosen as the Teacher of the Year. She will now compete at the National level.
Each year the VFW recognizes teachers who instill a sense of national pride in students. Truman was chosen for her commitment to bringing history alive for the students of Bret Harte through active interaction with those who have served our country, creating a better understanding of the sacrifices that have been made for our freedoms.
Using the approach that history is really current events of the past, in '97 Truman began the veteran oral history project to help students grasp not only the conflicts that shaped America but to know the people behind them. Truman maintains this philosophy throughout her curriculum, "I like to get to know the person." Be it Marin Luther King, JFK, or Dorothea Lange, each person has a personal story to tell.
In order to reach students on a more personal level, each Spring Truman brings history alive for her junior history class with an opportunity to learn about history on a first-person basis by bringing in Veterans to speak with the students in a small forum setting, one veteran to three students. The presentation follows on the heels of the completion of World Studies through the Vietnam War in their course work, so that the students have a "simple idea of the conflicts in which the presenters were participants of."
"I have 170 days to teach 200 years of history." Said Truman. Bringing the history alive for the kids really hits home. Undaunted by the time constraints Truman loves what she does. Her favorite part of teaching is what she refers to as the "aha" moment. When she can see the light in the students eyes and the clarity with which they understand.
Truman, a sports journalism major, fell into teaching when jobs were scarce for women in her chosen field so following advice from her adviser she took what she loved most about her major - researching and telling a story - and applied it to teaching. She has never looked back.
On a wall behind her desk are pictures of many of her students that have gone on to service in the US Military and remembrances of those that have been lost. Her love of country has lived on through not only her students but through her children, as one is in college back East in ROTC and another is studying kinesiology (physical therapy) in hopes of working with disabled Vets.
Bret Harte Assistant Principal Kelly Osborne stated, "The amount of pride that she puts in when she brings the veterans in to speak is obvious... its a great thing."
"Calaveras County should be extremely proud of her work." Said Calaveras County Office of Education Board Member Louis Boitano
Truman will receive her Teacher of the Year award at a banquet in Sacramento on January 18, 2013. If her nomination and subsequent interviews win at National she will be recognized in Louisville Kentucky at the VFW National Convention.
By,
Charity Maness
