Chica & The Bald Guy’s Teacher of the Week is Julie Malone

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Every week, Chica & the Bald Guy search the Shreveport/Bossier City area (commonly referred to as the SBC) for your favorite teacher. Every single person who chooses the teaching lifestyle does so knowing that they will most likely never get rich for it. The fearless men and women that face a class full (or more) of our kids day in and day out deserve much more than they get - especially now.

Let's face it - as parents, we owe these amazing people a lot!  They continue to overcome obstacles to make sure our kids get a quality education.  Just look at the last year - we went from cancelling school to distance learning to hybrid learning back to face-to-face instruction all in the span of a year.  We just expected these teachers to change with the times, and they did!  You have to love what you do if you are a teacher!

It is in that spirit that we seek to recognize one educator a week who goes above and beyond the call of duty for her students! This week, the exemplary person we are recognizing as The Chica & The Bald Guy Teacher of the Week is Benton Middle School Teacher Julie Malone!

Melissa was nominated by her co-worker and confidant Kim Howell.  Kim had a lot of good things to say about this weeks teacher, but it looks like there's a lot to talk about.  From her unwavering dedication to her students, to chipping in to renovate the school - this educator is all in!  Here's what Kim had to say about her hero:

Mrs. Malone set out on a different career path, yet education in middle school as a Science teacher is where she landed. Boy, are we lucky!! This woman is the mother of two young girls who we all know well, because they spend a lot of time at the schoolhouse with their mom. Julie is working on her National Board Certification, but you don’t hear her talk about it much...as a matter of fact the only way I know is because she came to the Tiger Library to check out the video equipment she needed. See, Julie doesn’t boast, she is gentle and unassuming. Yet, her presence is in every nook & cranny of BMS. She has painted almost every wall, built a bar in the lounge for seating, put vinyl lettering to identify classrooms, redid trophy cabinets, cleaned 30 plus years of yellow off ceilings, repainted paw prints up the front steps...it goes on and on and on...throughout the campus. I really got to know Julie this summer when BMS was in desperate need of an “updo.” She never hesitated and went to work to transform the school before the students arrived for their first day at their “new” school. (BMS 7/8 and Benton Intermediate 5/6 split into two campuses for 2020-2021.) It was a lot of work, but Julie never complained, she just exemplified the work ethic we all needed to make our campus “our Tiger home.” Along with this she prepared for a new Science curriculum leading her Science team, writing grants for science materials to make the learning come alive (she was awarded a $5000 grant.). Julie also makes sure when someone is in need she quietly takes care of it, for example, I needed some spray Lysol, it showed up after her Sam’s run. I asked what I owed her, “awww just keep the coffee coming.” Just the other day a student was having a really rough day, she was crying in the bathroom. Mrs. Malone heard her and knew that student should be at lunch, but instead of fussing at her, she comforted her, listened to “why” the student was in the bathroom and brought her to the Library so she could sit and gather herself. See, turns out that student was upset at her parents and couldn’t stop crying that day. She didn’t want her friends to see her crying and ask her questions. Mrs.Malone showed compassion and understanding to the middle school girl when it really would have been easier and faster for her to just tell her to get to where she needed to be. Julie’s heart is a servant heart, a generous heart, a loving heart...we are so fortunate to have her as an educator at Benton Middle. I am so fortunate to call her friend.

Congratulations, Julie Malone - you are Chica & the Bald Guy's Teacher of the Week. Not only do you have our respect and admiration, you have also been awarded a $50 gift card good at Notini's restaurant and a dozen delicious Beignets from PJ's Coffee in Bossier City!

Nominate the most amazing teacher you know for next week's Teacher of the Week Award!