Virginia Pooler

My mother always said, "Gin, like in tonic," when people asked her name. To the students, she was Pooler. My mother was known for being straightforward, down-to-earth, and approachable. Don't mistake her seasonal wooden figural necklaces, skirts, pantyhose, and sensible Naturalizer heels for some sort of stuffed-shirt schoolmarm. She was my mom at home, but she recognized that she mothered so many of her students at school too.

She attracted the types of students that came to school to be loved, to be understood, who perhaps weren't receiving that attention at home. My mother continued to mentor even students who had to leave Whitney for disciplinary reasons, and helped them on their redemption journeys. Today they are successful in their own right, and have grown from that childhood setback. She didn't turn her back on anyone, regardless of the maladaptive behaviors they may have demonstrated in other classrooms. My mother's high emotional quotient allowed her to connect with even the most difficult of students. As a result of all of this, even the most reluctant learner looked forward to her classes.

My mother was creative in her application of science principles to real-life lessons for her students. Before the sex-education curriculum, she used to teach a lesson on etiquette and table manners, because "you're probably going to have to go on a nice date." She helped students make the connection between cooking and science experiments, stressing the importance of following directions in both recipes and the laboratory during quarterly cooking assignments in which students would have to prepare a dish and then have it reviewed by two other people. And who could forget the egg-baby assignment? Probably not the janitorial staff, as they dealt with the aftermath of negligent "parents" around school.

My mom had a way of bringing the curriculum alive, regarding her students with the respect and maturity that they craved as young teens and holding them accountable with a straight-shooting and sometimes sarcastic quip. My mother was universally respected and loved by the students and staff at Whitney. She was there when it opened in 1976, and when she was on leave in late 2000 I remember her telling some well-wishing student visitors that she was going back to work soon. But she passed away in February the next year. Save for her love for her own children, her commitment to her students and Whitney High School was unmatched.

The Pooler spirit encompasses commitment and loyalty, strength and resiliency, compassion and empathy, leadership and selfless service to others. My mom inspired me to become a special-education high-school math teacher for 12 years (before I transitioned to providing logistics support to the U.S. Space Force). And I know she has inspired countless other former students to help make our world a better place.

—Erin Pooler Couitt