Recognizing the National Teachers Hall of Fame Inductees

April 25, 2006

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize this year's inductees into the National Teachers Hall of Fame located in Emporia, Kansas.  We have all had special teachers in our lives, and we are forever indebted to them for their motivation, compassion, and desire to see students achieve their full potential.  Now in its 15th year, the Hall of Fame continues its mission to honor exceptional teachers and promote excellence in teaching.  Congratulations to the 2006 inductees: Peggy Carlisle, Floyd Holt, Harlan Kredit, Pat Graff, and Linda Kaye White.

At Pecan Park Elementary in Jackson, Mississippi, Peggy Carlisle has used her talents to make science and math stimulating to her students.  As a 2005 Mississippi Hall of Masters teacher, she uses her skills to help students realize they are only limited by the size of their dreams.  According to the parent of a former student, "Mrs. Carlisle makes science interesting.  Just walking into her room lets you know this is not a regular classroom but a learning environment specifically arranged to get young minds thinking.  By using many hands-on activities, she brings life to books and dusty old facts."

Floyd Holt, a Physics teacher at Franklin D. Roosevelt High School in Hyde Park, New York, loves knowledge and conveys this to his students through his dedication to teaching.  Floyd strives to make education interesting and creates unique learning opportunities such as the ‘Spaceship Classroom of the Future'.  He has won the 1994 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Math in the USA and also the 2000 USA Today Award. 

According to a former student, what sets Harlan Kredit apart is that as well as he teaches biology, he teaches life even better.  At Lynden Christian High in Lynden, Washington, Mr. Kredit believes kids need to connect to the world outside of their school for education to be meaningful and productive.  He embodies this philosophy through his work as a Ranger Naturalist at Yellowstone National Park and through teaching environmental education to teachers at the American Wilderness Leadership School.  He is a recipient of the 1994 Washington State Conservation Teacher of the Year award and the 2004 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching.

Pat Graff, a journalism, humanities, and social studies teacher at La Cueva High in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is a bridge builder between different organizations, the media, and business.  She has had numerous students return to her school to give credit for her help and expertise in putting them on their current career path.  Her additional accomplishments include being named the New Mexico English Teacher of the Year and also winning the 2004 Governors Award for Outstanding New Mexico Woman. 

Linda Kaye White of Haycock Elementary in Falls Church, Virginia, has shared her love of music and education around the world.  She has traveled to Japan in 2003 with the Fulbright Memorial Fund and also to New Zealand to participate in the 2002 Fulbright Hays Seminar.  She is able to seamlessly take the resources she has gathered from across the world and turn them into meaningful, substantive learning for her students. 

Peggy, Floyd, Harlan, Pat, and Linda exemplify what it means to be a teacher - what it means to make a difference.  I commend the National Teachers Hall of Fame for their efforts to recognize great teachers.  These five inductees collectively have 134 years of teaching experience.  I salute these men and women for their dedication to the youth of our country.  It is my hope that they will find satisfaction in knowing the positive difference they have made in the lives of their students.  Thank you.