I would like to thank Debra Michlewitz, my ever-enthusiastic English teacher at Townsend Harris High School in Queens, and later, my patient mentor in teaching. The gifts Ms. Michlewitz gave me stretch well beyond the lessons of writing and rhetoric she so skillfully passed along. They surpass even my cherished passion for literature, cultivated during my years as her student.
Ms. Michlewitz taught me, through example and explanation, how to succeed. Hers were lessons of leadership and communication: how to speak to individuals and to groups, how to listen and how to get people to listen to each other, how to introduce a new idea or piece of knowledge and make that information accessible and interesting to the audience, whoever they may be.
Through Ms. Michlewitz, I learned what it means to be an effective and dedicated teacher. Although my career path has changed, every single day I am grateful that while “teaching” me to be a teacher, Ms. Michlewitz taught me how to be a leader and a success.
-Stephanie Falcone Maiman
Townsend Harris High School Class of 1993