Memphis teacher among five inducted to National Teachers Hall of Fame

Laura Testino
Memphis Commercial Appeal

Second graders come with plenty of curiosity. It's one reason Melissa Collins has been teaching them at John P. Freeman Optional School for the last 21 years. This week, she's recognized for her work as one of five new inductees to the National Teachers Hall of Fame. 

"I love being a teacher leader. I love John P. Freeman. I love the different leaders that have been here that have allowed me to continue to grow," Collins said. 

She grew up in and went to school in Whitehaven, where she teaches now. Her father, a former football coach at Whitehaven High School, inspired her to invest this way in her community.

Melissa Collins, a second grade teacher at John F. Freeman Optional School, is one of the five that were inducted to the National Teachers Hall of Fame.

"I saw what he gave to the community and to his football players, and I wanted to be just like him," Collins said. (Her dad, Stanley Collins, came out of retirement and is back at the school as a family specialist.) 

In non-pandemic years, Collins' induction would have been marked by a surprise school-wide assembly in March. Instead, she was surprised with a video call and — pending travel and health conditions — will be inducted next June and travel to Disney World for an education summit, said Carol Strickland, executive director at the Teachers Hall of Fame.

Collins will be one of 145 teachers who have been inducted since the Hall of Fame, founded by several groups in Emporia, Kansas, began inducting teachers in 1992. Other Tennessee teachers have been inducted, but only one other Memphis teacher, Joe York, who was part of the inaugural class. Inductees have at least 20 years of teaching experience across pre-K to 12th grade. 

Inductees typically spend time in Washington, D.C., too, which Collins will do next year. Through a College Football Playoff partnership, Collins and the other four inductees also received a $1,000 grant. 

Since Shelby County Schools students have returned to virtual classrooms this fall, Collins said she'll be innovative in how to use the grant. She plans to still do science experiments — what many students remember her for — even if she has to get creative about how to get those resources to students' homes. 

"I just try to do all I can to make sure that they have an opportunity to understand their future," Collins said. 

She's trying to foster that same community and curiosity despite the changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"Teachers are trying to really work hard to create a different way of learning for students, to move from the classroom to the cloud. It's totally different," Collins said. "I sometimes feel like a new teacher, like I'm going back 21 years, when I first started teaching."

In addition to science experiments, Collins also is honored by and remembered for the partnership she set up in the last few years with a classroom in New Jersey. Her Black students and the white students in the New Jersey classroom learn lessons in empathy from one another, she said. Students each have a pen pal, and the partnership brings in experts to speak with the classrooms. 

"I remember one of my students two years ago asked me, 'When did racism end?' And I paused, and said, 'Why do you think racism ended?'" Collins remembered. "She said, 'Well we have friends in New Jersey, and they're white and they love me.' That was toward the end of that year...I wanted to give her hope. So I said, 'Racism has not ended, but it can end with you.'" 

Michael Dunlea, the teacher in New Jersey, recommended Collins for the award. A former student, who also wrote a recommendation letter, spoke about what she learned from Collins' dedication to STEM work and the partnership in New Jersey.

"If I fall short in an area of school, Dr. Collins talks to me just as my own mother does. Dr. Collins also praises my accomplishments and continues to push me further," the former student wrote in her letter of recommendation. "I will never forget Dr. Collins and all that she has instilled in me, from my 2nd grade year."

Over the weekend, Collins spoke with another former student, who is now 25. The student's mother passed when she was a teenager, and she has adopted her as a sister, she said. 

"Sometimes she has thoughts where she wants to give up...And I reminded her of what I saw as a student, and I told her that she was still smart, that she could still accomplish whatever she needed to, and that she had to remember that you have short term goals, and you have to then move on to your long term goals," Collins said.  "And I said, 'It's OK. Sometimes slow and steady wins the race.'"

Collins' school will honor her Friday afternoon with a drive-by parade.  

Laura Testino covers education and children's issues for the Commercial Appeal. Reach her at laura.testino@commercialappeal.com or 901-512-3763. Find her on Twitter: @LDTestino