Veteran teacher makes her mark

Reading teacher Linda Williams is getting ready to close the book on her 32-year career at McIntire Elementary School in Fulton.

She said she isn’t sure what her new chapter in life will be, but knows she will miss this one.

“Of course, I love the children. I love working with them and being a part of their lives, being an influence,” she said. “Some of these kids just need a hug in the morning.”

Born in Granite City, Illinois, Williams grew up across the river from St. Louis and said she knew her future would be in the classroom.

“I was probably the first person in my family to graduate from college,” she said. “I never thought of doing anything but being a teacher.”

Williams said one of her favorite childhood games was playing school, and she was often the teacher.

“We just played school all the time,” she added. “I brought home old worksheets and old workbooks, and we played school all summer with the neighborhood kids. There was no (summer) slump for them.”

Williams went to Illinois State, known as a teaching university, and graduated in 1982, she said.

“I got a degree in elementary education with a minor in reading,” she said. “I was hired in as a reading teacher, so I went full circle.”

She remembered her early days in education.

“I taught two years in Arcola, Illinois, which is an Amish community. I actually had students who came to school in a horse and buggy,” she said. “I bought my bread from them. It was 10 cents a loaf, and I’d give them a dollar. The next day, they’d bring me 90 cents.”

When her husband got a job at the Callaway nuclear energy facility, Williams found her new home here.

“That became my entry to Fulton,” she said.

Williams began teaching at Center School as a sixth-grade teacher, then came to McIntire. Through the years, there have been many changes, but one constant is that kids still like learning, she said.

“When we were young, we wanted to learn,” she said. “Learning just happens differently now.”

New methods of teaching let children be more resourceful, and teachers guide more than dictate, she added.

“I think it’s very engaging,” Williams said of modern teaching methods. “I think it’s engaging for the students, and engaging for the teachers, and I think it’s engaging for the parents, too. I think we’ve gone from teachers giving kids information to kids being involved in inquiry-based learning. Teachers serve as facilitators and guide learning, guide the student.”

Williams still vividly remembers one college class that’s probably gone by the wayside.

“At Illinois State, we had to pass a handwriting class on the blackboard,” she said, laughing. “We would stay after school and practice. Our professor was very much a school marm with a long dress and hair in a bun, and she would grade us. … Teachers don’t know what chalk is anymore.”

She also remembered the days without the modern conveniences.

“There was a time in Fulton when we didn’t have air conditioning, and we had huge fans,” Williams said. “We would go home hoarse from the fans. We had to wear stockings and dresses, and we were so hot.”

Before school started up every August, teachers would go in, as they do today, to prepare their classrooms — and swelter, Williams also remembered.

“Getting your room ready in August, you could only stand it a couple of hours,” she said.

There are things Williams said she will miss at the end of the school year — including her work comrades, some of whom were former students.

“One of the things I treasure in this building — at McIntire, we have had several of my students hire in as teachers,” she said, adding that several have gone on to be administrators, as well. “Knowing these people as young children, and now they’re inspiring the youth of today.”

Williams started playing the piano several years ago, and the act of learning made her empathetic to the struggles some children have with certain subjects.

“My teaching changed when I had to learn something brand new,” she said. “It gave me a whole new appreciation.”

She also mentioned her former principal, Bob Hogan, who passed away in March.

“He taught me … a school is not a place. It’s the parents. It’s the teachers. It’s the children,” she said. “It’s an entire school community doing what’s best for the children.”

Fellow reading teacher Amy Crane said she’s worked with Williams off and on for 25 years.

“I think it’s going to be really difficult for us to find someone to fill her shoes,” she said.

Williams said through her journey from student to teacher, and soon-to-be retiree, one thing has never changed.

“You never stop learning, ever,” she stressed. “That’s the big thing. I learn every day from everybody in this building. Being open to what others have to offer makes you a better person. Everyone can help you to help the kids. Everyone can play a part in that.”