Press Release - 2001 Inductees
June 11, 2001/NTHF - 800-968-3224
CONTACT: Cora Z. Hedstrom, (620) 342-5660
Hall of Fame Celebrates 10 years of Teacher Recognition with Topeka activities
EMPORIA, Kan. –Topeka will play a key role in the 10th anniversary of The National Teachers Hall of Fame (NTHF) and its 2001 Induction Weekend, June 21-24. For the first time, two events are scheduled in Topeka as part of the Hall of Fame’s 10th anniversary celebration, and Kansas native and former WIBW newscaster Bill Kurtis will present the keynote address at the 10th induction ceremony on Saturday, June 23 in Emporia. On Friday, June 22, a statewide celebration of teaching excellence at the Kansas Historical Museum will be preceded by a tour of the Ward Meade Park.
The NTHF announced its 10th class of inductees on May 8, National Teacher Day, in simultaneous surprise events in the towns of the five inductees. Representatives from the Hall of Fame, its Board of Directors, NTHF membership, and corporate sponsors, traveled to Florida, Illinois, Oklahoma, and New Jersey to share the Hall of Fame announcement in front of the teachers’ families, students, and colleagues. The 2001 inductees are: Ronald Foreso, high school social studies, Parsippany High School, Parsippany, N.J.; Dr. Emiel Hamberlin,highschool biology/horticulture, DuSable High School, Chicago, Ill.; Mitsuye Hamada Conover, high school history, Bartlesville Public Schools, Bartlesville, Okla.; Ellen Kempler, high school English, MAST Academy, Miami, Fla..; and James Quinlan, high school industrial arts,Vernon Township High Schools, Vernon, N.J.
In an effort to broaden the recognition throughout the state’s educational and legislative communities, Lieutenant Governor Gary Sherrer will host a statewide tribute to the 2001 inductees and the teaching profession beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, June 22 at the Kansas Historical Museum, 6425 SW 6th Ave. Kansas Commissioner of Education Andy Tompkins also will make remarks. Among the sponsors of the Historical Museum event are the Security Benefit Group of Companies, Southwestern Bell Telephone, and the Kansas Press Association.
The 2001 inductees and NTHF VIPs will be welcomed to the capital city by Topeka Mayor Butch Felker during a tour of Ward Meade Park, 124 NW Fillmore, preceding the Historical Museum event. Julie Riphahn, mother of Anna Riphahn, for whom the garden at Ward Meade Park is named, will share the story of her daughter and present the inductees with copies of a book her daughter wrote. Mrs. Riphahn teaches at French Middle School in Topeka.
Emmy-award winning producer and former WIBW newscaster Bill Kurtis will present the keynote address, “Teaching in the 21st Century,” at the 10th induction ceremony, Saturday, June 23 beginning at 6:30 p.m. in Emporia State University’s Webb Lecture Hall. The induction also will include videotaped greetings by U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige.
Kurtis has been earning the respect of viewers, colleagues and competitors in television journalism for more than 30 years. His career has touched every facet of the most influential medium in our lives. After a nine-year stint at a Chicago CBS affiliate, Kurtis spent three years anchoring the CBS Morning News. Now seen exclusively on the A&E Networks, Kurtis is executive producer and anchor of the Emmy and CableACE Award-winning week-nightly primetime series Investigative Report, the longest-running regularly scheduled series devoting a full-hour to a single contemporary news topic.
Kurtis also is anchor of American Justice, an acclaimed historical documentary series about some of the most fascinating crimes of this century, and creator, anchor, and executive producer of The New Explorers. A native of Independence, Kansas, Kurtis earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas and a Juris Doctor from Washburn University School of Law. Both of Kurtis’ parents graduated from Emporia State University. His mother was a teacher.
The National Teachers Hall of Fame (NTHF) was in 1989 as a tribute to our nation=s most important profession-- teaching. The Hall of Fame is committed to drawing the public=s attention to exceptional teachers through a museum, teacher resource center, and a recognition program, which recognizes five of the nation=s most outstanding PreK-12 educators each June. Since inaugural induction ceremonies in 1992, 50 teachers from 25 states have been enshrined.