People
'Detoured' by the Major Leagues

A lifelong dream of becoming a teacher comes true for a big league baseball player.

Little boys grow up wanting to play big league baseball. Colorado teacher Frank Gonzales grew up wanting to be a teacher, but took a detour into the major leagues. Now he's fulfilling his original dream.

"My goal was always to be the first in my family to graduate from college, and then go back to my high school as a teacher and baseball coach," says the first-year teacher. "The major leagues kind of took me off course."

Today, he works with English-as-Second-Language students at Lincoln Junior High School in Fort Collins and also serves as head coach at Colorado State.

The Detroit Tigers drafted Gonzales out of Colorado State in 1989. He went on to play 11 years with the Tigers, the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Pittsburgh Pirates. He also spent two years in the major leagues, and one year playing international baseball in Taiwan.

"We've been around the world," he says, referring to his wife of 12 years and two children. "In 12 seasons, we had 32 different addresses in eight countries, including in South America where I played summer ball. It was an amazing experience, but when Colorado State called and asked if I would coach, I knew it was time to go home and pursue my original goal."

With the help of a scholarship program in the Poudre School , Gonzales finished college and started teaching at Lincoln--where, he says, most of his students aren't fazed by his former career.

"I'm their teacher, and I think that's what they respect," he says. "The players on my team at CSU on the other hand, want to know all about Chipper Jones, Derrick Jeter, and the other guys I came through the leagues with that are big now.

I tell them they are just 'regular guys,' like me."

Most people dread the thought of a 500-person wedding guest list. But Catherine Witkowski, a school secretary at Richard E. Byrd Elementary in Glen Rock, New Jersey, is hoping at least that many show up at her June nuptials. After all, more people means more money--for the local symphony, that is. Witkowski, who moonlights part time as general manager for the local 100-person, all-volunteer Ridgewood Symphony, and her beau of seven years, a symphony musician, are tying the knot during a concert that will feature traditional wedding music. By holding it in a local school, Witkowski expects the majority of guests will be students, teachers, administrators, and parents from her district.

"We wanted to do something different," she says. "It just seemed natural to have our wedding during a concert, and to have it be a fundraiser, too. We hope everyone will show up, if only because it's a free hour of great music. But we also hope people will be inspired to make a donation to the symphony in our honor.

Part of that donated money will be used to help fund Witkowski's real passion: "Project Symphony," an outreach effort she organizes to bring symphony musicians to local schools. Last year, the symphony performed at six schools. This year they will perform at three, including her own.

"Lots of people tell me what a special thing I'm doing by helping to bring this music to children," says the Association activist. "But I really don't think it's that extraordinary. I love my school job. And I love the symphony. It seems only natural to want to combine them."

Toward a Safe Haven

Tired of the violence in the community surrounding her school, Nashville, Tennessee elementary teacher Lisa Jones fought back. She teamed with colleague Melanie Ricks and enlisted the help of Tim Chavez, a local newspaper columnist who agreed to publicize the plights and perils of children living in inner-city.

Within weeks of the first article, Nashville residents were offering help. That prompted Jones to start Project SAVE (Students and Teachers Against Violent Environments).

Today, the project is thriving. A Vanderbilt University psychologist gives free monthly workshops to both parents and teachers about topics like discipline. A suburban Optimist Club donates gun trigger locks, which have already gone to more than 300 inner-city families. Local restaurants have opened their doors to once "troubled" teens -- who now are learning on-the-job skills. And, community police and leaders are helping residents form neighborhood watch groups and learn about gun safety. The centerpiece of project is its Enrichment Center.

Jones, who is taking a leave of absence from the classroom to run the project, says "People want this to succeed, the response has just been overwhelming. "We'll make this work, even if we have to do it one child at a time."

For a Good Cause

Want to know how to get free money? Talk to Janet Muller, a third-grade teacher at Duniway Elementary School in Portland, Oregon. In 12 years, she's brought in nearly $100,000 for her students, classroom and school.

"When I became a teacher, I immediately set a professional goal to earn $100,000 in grants by the time I retired," she says. "I wanted to make a contribution beyond teaching."

Still years away from retirement, Muller is already just shy of that three-figure mark, having won more than 60 contests, grants and awards. Most recently, she was named Educator of the Year by Time Magazine for Kids and Chevrolet, an honor that came with a $2,500 cash prize, as well as a new car.

"My classroom is crammed with hands-on learning tools that I purchase with the winnings," she says, referring to the 11 animals, some exotic, that call her classroom home; a seven-foot-tall active volcano; a planetarium; working robots built by students; and replicas of animal skulls, including one from the Kenya Museum of Natural History.

"My children don't just learn, they actually feel and see," she says. "Their enthusiasm and excitement for learning is what motivates me to keep seeking out this money. I want to give everything back to them."

Muller, who spends substantial time everyday combing the Internet and teacher publications for cash-based awards, says there are many organizations that want to give teachers money.

"Don't let a rejection shake you," advises Muller. "Keep trying."

The Man behind "Remember the Titans"

The highly acclaimed Denzel Washington-flick "Remember the Titans," released last fall, is not just about football.

"If you want to see a football game, this film isn't for you," says Herman Boone, the retired T.C. Williams High School teacher and coach whose real-life story is brought alive by Washington and the silver screen. "It's about people coming together in spite of racial differences. It is an inspirational story about what we can overcome."

Although the movie takes what Boone calls, "artistic liberties," it focuses on the events of 1971 -- when Boone was appointed head football coach over a popular white coach in the newly integrated Alexandria, Virginia school system.

"I was too black for the white kids and not black enough for the black kids," he recalls. "The community was in upheaval because of the integration; it was just a mess."

Despite the odds, Boone -- with the help of Bill Yoast, the white coach he displaced as head coach who eventually became his assistant -- led the team to an undefeated season and helped unite a community that was pulling apart at the seams because of racial differences.

"Those kids, who had little experience with other races and religions, came together as a team," says Boone, who spent significant time consulting with actors on the movie set. "They set an example for their parents, for the other students, for the community. In fact, then-President Richard Nixon called us 'the team that saved the city of Alexandria.'"

Today, Boone still substitutes at T.C. Williams, and his former players bring their own children to meet him -- including the nearly 65 players from his legendary 1971 team that showed up in black-tie at the Washington, DC movie premiere.

"Even the once hard-headed ones bring their kids to see me; and they tell them, 'this is the man that changed daddy's life,'" he says with emotion. "I can't tell you how gratifying that is. Each time that happens, another link is broken in the long chain of prejudice."