"Ron Clark"
Monday, August 30th, 2010
Ron was born in 1971 in North Carolina. He enjoyed a traditional southern upbringing heavy on discipline, manners, and respect. After college, the nomadic southerner worked as a singing waiter in London and stayed on a deserted island in Greece until some Romanian gypsies and a Transylvania Rat meal sent him home to Mama with severe food poisoning. Once he recovered, she urged him to apply for an empty teaching position at the local elementary school, adding inspiration by threatening to cut off his financial support.
Ron was surprised to find his passion in that classroom, and the adventure he’d been craving. When he discovered his students' lack of respect for themselves and others Ron responded with five non-negotiable rules. The simple rules, “make eye contact" and "say yes sir", proved successful when joined with his enthusiasm and belief in the individual. Five years later an article about failing inner city schools beckoned Ron to New York where he built on his rules and his theory that learning hinged on respect.
Today Ron’s the best-selling author of "The Essential 55". He’s been named Disney’s Teacher of the Year and had his life dramatized by a TNT original movie. None of it affected his focus. All Things Southern found Ron raising funds for the Ron Clark Academy for inner city kids in Atlanta, Georgia. When asked if there was one basic rule all the others hinge on Ron Clark said,
“Rule #55 can be seen in my classroom daily: Be the Best Person You Can Be. I do whatever it takes to light a fire in the hearts of my students, to get them to realize their own potential and to put them on a course where they'll be able to achieve their deepest dreams. As parents and teachers, we have to set the tone for our children and believe in our own hearts that they can achieve greatness; once we have that confidence, then they will too.”
Monday, August 30th, 2010
Ron was born in 1971 in North Carolina. He enjoyed a traditional southern upbringing heavy on discipline, manners, and respect. After college, the nomadic southerner worked as a singing waiter in London and stayed on a deserted island in Greece until some Romanian gypsies and a Transylvania Rat meal sent him home to Mama with severe food poisoning. Once he recovered, she urged him to apply for an empty teaching position at the local elementary school, adding inspiration by threatening to cut off his financial support.
Ron was surprised to find his passion in that classroom, and the adventure he’d been craving. When he discovered his students' lack of respect for themselves and others Ron responded with five non-negotiable rules. The simple rules, “make eye contact" and "say yes sir", proved successful when joined with his enthusiasm and belief in the individual. Five years later an article about failing inner city schools beckoned Ron to New York where he built on his rules and his theory that learning hinged on respect.
Today Ron’s the best-selling author of "The Essential 55". He’s been named Disney’s Teacher of the Year and had his life dramatized by a TNT original movie. None of it affected his focus. All Things Southern found Ron raising funds for the Ron Clark Academy for inner city kids in Atlanta, Georgia. When asked if there was one basic rule all the others hinge on Ron Clark said,
“Rule #55 can be seen in my classroom daily: Be the Best Person You Can Be. I do whatever it takes to light a fire in the hearts of my students, to get them to realize their own potential and to put them on a course where they'll be able to achieve their deepest dreams. As parents and teachers, we have to set the tone for our children and believe in our own hearts that they can achieve greatness; once we have that confidence, then they will too.”
