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Fourth-graders Kenny Christie (left), Brittany Mills and Tabatha Miller participate in Becky Acors' reading class. Acors says she plans to take advantage of Spotsylvania system's early retirement program at the end of the next school year.
Becky Acors, a reading specialist at R. E. Lee Elementary School at Spotsylvania Courthouse, has more than 50 years' teaching experience. |
By PAMELA GOULD
Her first year as a teacher, Becky Acors took nearly every one of her third-graders home with her for an overnight visit.
That same year she assembled a caravan with her husband, her parents and a student's parents to take her class of 15 on field trips. They visited a beaver pond, her father's Spotsylvania County dairy farm, and the National Zoo in Washington.
"The parents had a flat tire on the way [to the zoo] and we all got separated, but we did get back together," Acors recalled recently. "But we didn't have cell phones to check on them."
Cell phones didn't exist half a century ago when Acors started her teaching career at Robert E. Lee Elementary at Spotsylvania Courthouse.
And in the 1950s, no one batted an eye when she decided to take one or two youngsters home or out for some adventure.
But Acors, who plans to retire next year, knows better than to recommend today's teachers follow in her footsteps.
"I don't think they would do it, and it probably wouldn't be smart for them to do it," she said.
GENERATIONS AND CHANGE
Acors started her career in a simpler time: before the Internet, text messaging and digital-video conferencing for classroom instruction.
The 72-year-old has made it a point to keep up with technology but believes in the importance of human interactions.
Her goal is to understand a child, treat each one as unique and, most of all, convey that she cares.
That's why before one of her field trips, she took a little girl home with her, gave her a bath and then took her shopping in Fredericksburg for a new outfit.
Afterward, Acors said, "she was the happiest child."
Acors started teaching 52 years ago, immediately after graduating from Mary Washington College. She has missed only one year since then, when she was pregnant with her third child.
Acors taught in the classroom from 1957 until 1978, spending time at every grade except sixth. Since then, she has served as the reading specialist, working with students of all ages to help bring their skills to grade level.
"My first year, I taught all repeaters," Acors said. "I think there was a need to have somebody that really cared for them."
That spurred her idea of providing individual attention to the students outside of school. Afterward, she just continued the practice.
Acors has taught four generations of one family and two generations more times than she can count.
"Through the years, I've taught lots of the children and parents," she said.
Principal Robin Nemeth has worked with Acors for nine years and said she remains effective in the classroom.
Last year, she was the school's teacher of the year.
"She's kept up with current research, and she changes her approach to match current research with her students," Nemeth said.
"That's one of the things you might not see with people of her experience."
Acors said her great joy is seeing students progress.
"I really love looking at the children here in September and looking again in June and observing their growth and confidence and enthusiasm," she said.
'EARLY' RETIREMENT
When Acors heard the Spotsylvania school system was offering an early retirement program this year,
When she discovered she did, she thought maybe it was finally time to go.
But she couldn't bring herself to take advantage of it this school year.
"I absolutely love what I do," she said during a recent interview in her book-filled workspace. "It's not a job; it's part of my life."
Acors' three children are grown, married and have children of their own. Her husband, Jimmy Acors, passed away in 2000. They met at Spotsylvania High School when she was 15, but her parents wouldn't let her marry until she finished college six years later.
Acors said having a job gets her up and out each morning.
"I love being with the students, and the faculty here is like a big family, and I would rather do something I love to do than look for something to keep me busy," she said.
Then, after a pause, she added, "and maybe I just don't want to admit I'm getting older."
Acors will be one month shy of her 74th birthday when she retires at the end of the next school year.
Though she got hearing aids last year and the youngest children sometimes call her "Grandma," Acors gives little outward evidence of her longevity.
"She's still effective," Nemeth said. "I used to tease her and tell her she couldn't retire until I did, but I support whatever decision she makes."
Acors doesn't know when she qualified to take regular retirement--only that it was "a long time ago."
With one more year to adjust to the idea, Acors thinks she'll be ready to finish her tenure--but not the contact with students.
"When I retire, I will probably volunteer here," she said without hesitation. "I have teachers here who are waiting for me to come back and volunteer here."
Pamela Gould: 540/735-1972
Email: pgould@freelancestar.com
