After the Garden Is Gone

Marnie Hazelton

During the 2010–11 school year, tensions were running high in my school district over impending New York State education budget cuts. Money from the Obama administration's stimulus package had run dry, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was warning school districts to be prepared to streamline their staffs.

When budget cuts were announced, my district abolished several teaching and administrative positions—including mine. At the time, I was the district coordinator for elementary education in a seriously underperforming school district on Long Island that has been under state control for nearly 10 years.

As the coordinator for elementary education, I supervised nine English language arts, math, science, and technology curriculum specialists in three elementary schools; assisted three principals, who lacked assistant principals in their buildings, with teacher observations and evaluations; and planned and coordinated professional development. I was also the district test coordinator and literacy team cochair. Plus, I created a program to help principals and teachers analyze data to drive and improve instruction, and I led parent orientation sessions on school curriculum and student assessments.

My other duties included coordinating field trips, spearheading efforts to increase the use of technology in the classroom, and interviewing and making recommendations to the human resource department on hiring substitute teachers.

Then, through the strange logic of budget cuts, suddenly all those duties now seemed dispensable.

So, Mr. President…

In April, after receiving a mailed notification that my position was being eliminated, I decided to voice my displeasure by writing a letter to President Obama. I shared with him my family's history of military service since World War I and our commitment to working as educators. The president often refers to educators as "nation builders," so I pressed him on how he expected the country to continue to move forward and compete in a global economy when education budgets are being decimated across the country and our nation builders are receiving pink slips.

In June, the mailman slipped a priority mail envelope under my door with The White House as the return address. Inside, between two cardboard sheets, was a small envelope that contained a handwritten note on White House stationery. In the note, President Obama thanked me for my dedication to education and assured me that the demand for educators and persons with my skills will grow as the economy and state budgets rebound. He also wrote, "In the meantime, I'm rooting for you!"

A Teachable Moment

I was in shock that the president took time to not only read my letter, but also personally respond. The teacher in me decided to use it for a teachable moment. The next Monday, I asked a 3rd grade teacher if I could teach a mini-lesson on the importance of writing and writing well.

As I shared the note from President Obama, I tried to convey to the students how powerful their voices can be through the written word. I told them that not only should people be able to read and understand their writing, but that it should also be passionate, moving, and inspiring. I stressed that the skills they were learning in 3rd grade would be valuable assets to them in their future.

As I left the classroom, my heart became heavy. I went back to my office, sat at my desk, and cried. This is why I became a teacher: to help students connect the dots between what they were learning in class and the practical application to life. I sobbed because I knew that after June 30, I would no longer have that privilege of standing in front of a class.

A First Lady's Comfort

Fast forward to September 20, when I attended a women's luncheon in Manhattan where First Lady Michelle Obama was the keynote speaker. Mrs. Obama spoke about how women, especially teachers, were affected ...

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Marnie Hazelton is currently a doctoral candidate in educational leadership at Hofstra University in New York. In addition to receiving local teaching honors, Hazelton was designated a 2009 ASCD Outstanding Young Educator Honoree and a 2010 ASCD Emerging Leader.