My time at UT ended upon my return from Washington D.C. when two full professors returned from sabbaticals and the department's budget for me ran out.
It was a time to make decisions. Two jobs were open at the time: Memorial High School in Houston where my friend Elaine Pritchett had taught for many years. Pritchett was a National Journalism Teacher of the Year winner, and I knew it would be difficult to follow her.
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| Principal John Taylor |
The other job was at Robert E. Lee High School in San Antonio. I had known the teacher there several years earlier, but the publications had gone through some tough times. It seemed like a good place to do a rebuilding job.
During my interview with Principal John Taylor, he asked if I thought I was conservative enough to teach at the school. I had just shaved a full beard, but he did not know that.
During my interview with Principal John Taylor, he asked if I thought I was conservative enough to teach at the school. I had just shaved a full beard, but he did not know that.
"Sure," I replied. "I can be whatever it takes to get the job done." He laughed. "You know, we like to win here at Lee."
"I'll bet you a six-pack that we win Tops in Texas the first year," I said, looking him square in the face. "That is if I can get top students to work."
"I'll bet you a six-pack that we win Tops in Texas the first year," I said, looking him square in the face. "That is if I can get top students to work."
He promised he would help recruit top students. And he followed through on that promise. Eventually, six National Merit semifinalists showed up to work on The Bugle Call, the biweekly newspaper. At the University Interscholastic League Conference that spring the newspaper was announced as Tops in Texas for the first time in school history.
At the end of the semester, I was invited to a barbecue at Principal Taylor's home attended mostly by coaches. With great fanfare, he presented me with a six-pack of cold Budweiser.
