Three questions up front:

1. Just because everyone else is making resolutions, does that mean I have to (If everyone jumped off a cliff, would I follow them?)?
2. Who said I can only attempt to improve myself on January 1 every year?
3. Is there a rule that says I can't make more than one resolution?

That being said, if you are one to make resolutions, consider the following:

• Get my child to school on time every day.
• Ask my child about his/her day.
• Diligently read every note that is sent home from school.
• Listen to my child read every day.
• Take time to explain things to my child, including daily news and ethical choices.
• Finally get my child to master basic facts in all four computation areas (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division).
• Read to my child every day.
• Start and maintain a back-and-forth "journal" with my child.
• Help my child with work when necessary.
• Ask my child to explain his/her work.
• Get both sides of the story before advocating for my child.
• Set a good example for my child, knowing s/he watches the same screens I do, sees the places I visit, listens to my speech and my tone, and notices how I treat my spouse, family, and friends.
• Attend family events when they are offered at the school.
• Begin a positive family tradition.
• Work to make my home a safe, stress-free place for my child.
• Stop to appreciate the responsibilities and blessings that come with being a parent.

I don't make formal resolutions, but I think and pray about these things every day.  These suggestions, and others, guide me in my very serious task of parenting (Of course, I have a number of similar thoughts concerning the children I teach.).

​The end of the year brings a time of reflection.  As I continually want to remember the things that have brought me to this point in my professional career, I try to add to my personal timeline every year.  One might think things would slow down after retirement, but it's interesting to see how many items needed to be added to the list for this past year.

1983
Mr. Hoggatt begins working for his degree in Communications from the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (USAO).  He takes classes to add a secondary teaching certificate to his degree program.

1985
Mr. Hoggatt graduates from USAO.

1986
Mr. Hoggatt completes his student-teaching requirements at Yukon High School and Mustang Middle School (Oklahoma) and receives his teaching credentials.
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1986
Mr. Hoggatt is hired at The Wilds, soon becoming the manager and education director for the outdoor park.

1989
Mr. Hoggatt returns to USAO for a year to fulfill requirements for a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education.

​1990
Mr. Hoggatt becomes a fifth grade history and reading teacher at the Page-Woodsen Fifth Year Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1990
Mr. Hoggatt transfers to Buchanan Elementary School in Oklahoma City, where he teaches gifted second graders in a room with no walls.

1991
The principal encourages Mr. Hoggatt to teach a class of gifted first graders.

1992
Mr. Hoggatt is thrust into a combination class of gifted first and second graders, "looping" with the latter.  The staff nominates him to be the Teacher of the Year for Buchanan elementary, but he has too little experience to qualify by the district's standards.

1992
The Oklahoma City School District selects three teachers to attend the Student Team Learning Conference at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.  Mr. Hoggatt is one of the three.

1993
Mr. Hoggatt wins a small grant for math manipulatives.

1993-1995
For the first time, Mr. Hoggatt teaches the same grade (second) in the same room for two years in a row.

2011
Mr. Hoggatt teaches tornado safety to a fourth graders in Joplin, Missouri, two days prior to the town (including Hoggatt's school) being struck by a destructive EF5 tornado.

2011
Mr. Hoggatt assists in coordinating disaster relief efforts with the church of Christ at 26th and Connecticut.  When Summer School begins, he teaches fifth graders for the month of July.

2012
Mr. Hoggatt travels to Atlanta, Georgia, to meet and observe teachers and students at the Ron Clark Academy.

2015
Mr. Hoggatt completes five years as the president of the Joplin Teachers Association (local MSTA).

2016
One of Mr. Hoggatt's homemade lyric videos wins third place at the annual PBIS film festival.

2017
Mr. Hoggatt's class is featured in a two-part news report about soft skills.  The report is the recipient of the Missouri State Teachers Association media award for the year.

2017
Mr. Hoggatt is one of the 100 Alumni You Should Know for the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.​

2018
Mr. Hoggatt is accepted to participate in the George Washington Teacher Institute in Virginia.  He spends five nights on the property at Mount Vernon in 35 hours of scholarly lecture and participates in after hours tours and events.

2019
Mr. Hoggatt attends the Fort Ticonderoga Teacher Institute in Upstate New York.  He spends a week at this important location, studying the French and Indian War and recalling the American Revolution.

2020
Mr. Hoggatt is accepted to the the Teacher Institute at Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown.

2020
Mr. Hoggatt must teach virtually for the last quarter of the school year, due to the COVID pandemic which forces schools to shut down nationwide.  School begins on time and in person in the fall, but students and teacher are instructed to wear masks and maintain six feet of "social distancing" most of the time.  The Hoggatt family contracts the disease over Thanksgiving Break, but Mr. Hoggatt only misses a week of school.

2021
Mr. Hoggatt is acknowledged in the Joplin Globe as an outstanding teacher and receives a H.O.O.T. award (Honoring Our Outstanding Teachers).​

2021
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History selects Mr. Hoggatt to receive History Teacher of the Year for the state of Missouri.  Hoggatt receives $1,000 along with the award which will be presented at a school assembly.

2021
Mr. Hoggatt is named a master teacher for the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in New York City.  He will work passionately with historical scholars and educators to present professional development, develop curriculum, and interpret primary documents from the GLI collection.

2022
Mr. Hoggatt's application and creative history lesson qualifies him to attend the inaugural Inspiration Conference at Disney's Imagination Campus 50 Teachers Celebration, held at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

​2022
Mr. Hoggatt retires following his 32nd year in education, with 27 years of living in the same fourth grade classroom at Cecil Floyd Elementary in Joplin, Missouri.
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2022
Mr. Hoggatt leads the national History Camp for elementary students, held virtually through the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.  Six weekly presentations focus on National Parks throughout the United States.

2022
Mr. Hoggatt is recruited to write curriculum for the Lincoln Presidential Foundation in Springfield, Illinois.  A week of extensive lessons are developed for the Warning Signs project, with Hoggatt's focus being on the Dred Scott Case in Missouri.

2022
In the richest on-site institute of his career, Mr. Hoggatt finally gets to attend the teacher institute at Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown (previously cancelled since 2020 due to the COVID pandemic).

2022
Mr. Hoggatt's wife enters the educational world as a secondary teacher at Neosho Christian School in Neosho, Missouri, instructing students in Chemistry, Algebra, and Geometry.

2022
Mr. Hoggatt begins supervising student-teachers from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas.

2023
The relationship with the Gilder Lehrman Institute continues as Mr. Hoggatt leads pedagogical sessions and facilitates presentations with two-time Pulitzer Prize recipient, Dr. Alan Taylor.  Additionally, Hoggatt is asked to be the lead lesson writer for a curriculum involving Asian-American history (still awaiting grant acceptance).

One example of this is the jacket in the video.  This jacket, along with most of the 200 tons of goods that were on the Arabia when she sank, was probably meant to be sold in a retail store near the head of the Oregon and California Trails.  It is a never-worn woolen jacket.  This one, however, has portions that are even untouched by the Missouri River mud.  Like most of the items on display in the museum, this one will look like new, even though it is 165 years old.

What story does it tell?  Can you see a character in history?  A father embarking on the westward trails, dragging a family onto a covered wagon for months with no certain future?  A father bartering the jacket with other travelers in exchange for food for his family?  A father wearing the jacket while digging a shallow grave for one of his children who succumbed to illness.  A father giving the jacket to his wife as she shivers in the cold Rocky Mountains during the winter?

At the student teacher recognition ceremony held December 15, graduating seniors in teacher education at Pittsburg State University, raised their right hands and read the following oath:

It was explained that doctors have had an oath to "do no harm" (and some other things) for decades, but that as professional educators, teachers have not.

I didn't take an oath in either state or district that I taught in or any of the colleges I have attended, and I've not heard of a teacher taking such an oath before this ceremony in Pittsburg, Kansas, but it is one more reason to love PSU's approach to teacher education or others.

There is nothing in this pledge that mentions blindly following administration or legislation and rightly so:  I could not honestly make that pledge, not knowing what the administration or legislation might come to in the future. There is also nothing here about elevating any testing platform or supporting the constant testing of children as an indicator that a teacher is doing a proper job.  There is nothing here about keeping up with every single data point in order to track student success or failure.  I like the exclusion of these things as much as I like the inclusion of the items that are listed.

As for what is on this oath, it is all noble and dignified.  It is a promise that these new teachers should work together, with students, peers, and parents, to do what is best for the whole child.  Instead of teeth, there is heart in this oath.  It has compassion and care, trust and respect.  It demonstrates that the oath keeper is concerned with every child's present and future.  It acknowledges that teachers touch the future.

And it's one more reason to be proud of my association with PSU.  Other universities and teacher education programs do not necessarily acknowledge these things; some even choose to emphasize a brutal, harsh, time-sucking, emotion-draining academic program, with all kinds of ridiculous paper projects and hoop-jumping before their graduates can receive their exit papers.  They pride themselves in telling incoming student teachers (and I heard this first hand when I was a cooperating teacher for another local university), "Tell your spouse, your boss, your church, and your children that you're going to be unavailable to them for the next semester.  This semester of student teaching is going to require your every moment.  You will not have free time to explore with your family, and you will not have time to prepare meals for your children.  For the next few weeks, you belong elsewhere - making plans, preparing materials, teaching classes, grading papers, and working through the extensive project that this university requires for you to graduate with your credentials."

Happily, to my knowledge, PSU does not say this or practice this philosophy.  Yes, there are some things that are required by the state and the university, but for the most part, support is provided.  Coaching through stumbles and hard times is emphasized.  PSU does not do everything possible to make students fail and burn out.  It honors students who have worked hard and achieved a level of ability that will help them become great teachers.

When pursuing my master's degree through PSU, more than one professor explained that they realized that we were already teachers with full-time jobs and that we didn't have the time to complete a bunch of busy work.  They recognized us as professionals, and they respected our opinions in their classes.  As they said, they were not out to bust us or kill us with mindless chatter.  I really appreciated that approach and their trust in me.

It is difficult to trust any employer that does not return that trust (Don't get me started!), and in this case, I contend that students will be more likely to return to PSU for their master's degrees, for alumni events, and for basic varsity pride.  They will cherish an education that cared for them enough to nurture them and love them.  They will understand that the program has their best interest at heart.  To demonstrate this, one of the final quotes in the recognition ceremony went something like this.  "Today, you are our students.  Tomorrow [after commencement], you will be our peers."

Let's Think:
Mary's response to Elizabeth's greeting is to praise Almighty God.  This long speech from Mary is one of the few times we hear Mary's voice in Scripture.  It is often called the Magnificat, based on the Latin term used in the beginning of her speech.

Mary begins by saying her spirit and her soul are very happy - happy to the point of exalting and rejoicing.  How often are we so happy that we exalt and rejoice?  Then, she quickly turns the focus on the reasons for her ecstatic good cheer.  She lists these off by acknowledging what God has done for her personally, for His people through the ages - from bringing down rulers to feeding the hungry, from scattering the proud and humbling the rich to giving Israel mercy.  There is a lot here to unpack:  read it again and find all of the ways and reasons why Mary praises God and acknowledges His leadership and compassion.

​She stays with Elizabeth for three months.  Maybe this is so she can help with the delivery of Elizabeth and get baby John all warm and cozy before returning to give birth herself.

On Thursday, December 15, 2022, seniors completing their student teaching semester at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas, received medallions to signify their participation.  They wore these medals in their commencement ceremony on the following evening.

I had the privilege of supervising two of these students, EMMA and COLBY, as they taught classes in nearby Carthage and Carl Junction, Missouri.  I was honored to watch each of them improve their skills, based in part on the meager recommendations I offered. COLBY has already secured a teaching position in Kansas, while EMMA has some time to make applications for the upcoming fall semester.  Our best wishes go to all of the recent graduates of the teacher education programs at PSU.