NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Leah Jackson (jacksonl@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

10/08/2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES-Five Northwestern State University alumni have been named Distinguished Educators by the NSU College of Education. They are Dr. Charles F. Thomas and Mrs. Mary Lee Posey, both of Natchitoches, Mrs. Chris Weaver of Baton Rouge, Dr. H.T. Garner of Monroe and the late Dr. L.F. Fowler.

Dr. Thomas earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in health and physical education from NSU, then Louisiana State Normal, in 1941 and 1950. He earned his doctorate in health and physical education at George Peabody College for Teachers at Vanderbilt University in 1959.

Thomas served in the U.S. Navy from 1941-1945, then became a teacher and basketball coach at Bastrop High School. He was head basketball coach at NSU from 1950-57 and a professor until 1961 when he became state supervisor of health and physical education for the Louisiana Department of Education. Thomas returned to NSU as a professor in 1963 and later served as head of the Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. In the following years he served as Dean of Administration, Dean of the College and Vice President for Academic Affairs. He retired from teaching at Tulane University in 1983.

"Just being given the opportunity to teach and work with students over a period of 35 years was highlight enough," Thomas said. "However, the real reward has been the positive responses I have received from those students since retirement. The excitement and fond memories return each time one says 'Thank you.'"

Posey was the first graduate to earn a B.S. in Early Childhood Education at NSU in 1947. She later earned a masters at NSU and did post-graduate work at the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University for Women, Stephen F. Austin University and University of California-Los Angeles.

After graduating from NSU, where she was active in several organizations, Posey taught school and served in an administrative capacity for more than 32 years in Caddo, Red River and Natchitoches Parishes, teaching at all grade levels from nursery through college methods.

Posey pioneered the kindergarten-primary curriculum in the mid 1960s, starting at the NSU Elementary Lab School. She later made a presentation to the state legislative education committee on the importance of kindergarten. Because of her efforts, Louisiana kindergartens were added to public schools in all parishes. She then wrote curriculum guides, planned classrooms, purchased learning materials and trained kindergarten teachers for several parishes.

"In addition to 20 children, there were many days that college students and public school teachers lined the walls of our classroom," Posey recalled of those early days at the Lab School. "After teaching the children for three hours, I would meet with college students and public school teachers for either classes or seminars. It wasn't long before the state added kindergarten to all public schools. It was a great experience."

Posey was a member of several teacher organizations and received numerous awards. She retired from director of Central Louisiana Professional Development Center at NSU, where she served as a consultant for nine parishes.

Weaver is executive director of the Workforce Commission in Louisiana Governor's Office. She earned an undergraduate degree in marketing education at NSU in 1967 and a graduate degree in education in 1972. She did post-graduate work at NSU and North Texas State University. She was the marketing education coordinator at Woodlawn High School and principal of the Caddo Career Center and Woodlawn High School before being named Louisiana Assistant Superintendent of Vocational Education. She was Director of Vocational Education for the Louisiana Department of Education, then joined the Governor's Office where she was workforce development liaison/school-to-work liaison before becoming executive director.

Recalling her most memorable teaching experience, she said, "I spent 13 happy years as a cooperative marketing teacher at Woodlawn High School in Shreveport. Working with students and employers, I saw my students mature, many of them continued on in their market jobs and became productive adults. Now one of my sons teaches and coaches many of their children at Southwood."

Garner earned a degree in business education at NSU in 1948 and a graduate and master's degrees in at the University of Arkansas in 1952 and 1962. He retired as Acting Dean of Graduate Education at ULM in 1993. Throughout his career, he held membership in numerous professional and civic organizations, including Phi Delta Kappa, Kappa Delta Pi, National Elementary Principals' Association, the National Education Association, Louisiana Principal's Association, American Association of School Administrators and Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Garner said his most memorable teaching experience was during his first semester as an English and social studies teacher at Vivian High School.

"I was both surprised and delighted to see my dad standing at my classroom door waiting for an invitation to come in," Garner recalled. "He had a chance to see his college graduate/teacher son standing before a high school class and I had a chance to see the pride he had in me that afternoon. It was truly a symbiotic event for us." Garner's father died less than a year later.

Fowler earned a degree in chemistry and physics with a minor in math from NSU in 1933. He earned his masters and doctorate degrees in education at the University of Arkansas. He was principal and head basketball coach at Marthaville High school and later was a full professor of elementary education at NSU and principal of the NSU Lab School, kindergarten through eighth grade.

The educators will be honored during a brunch during Homecoming on Oct. 16.

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