For the past thirty-four years, Patrick Marion has had an impressive career as an educator in the Stanley-Boyd Area School District. “I’ve had incredible variety in my career, all at Stanley-Boyd,” Patrick remarked mentioning that he has been a classroom teacher in fourth, fifth, and sixth grades, coached Freshman and JV Volleyball, was the Technology Administrator, and Director of Online Learning, and was a middle school principal for a few years. Currently he is the District Library Media Specialist and Director of Online Learning but at the end of this school year in May, Patrick plans to retire from his long-term career at Stanley-Boyd.
Growing up Patrick moved around first living in Boyd, and then growing up on a dairy farm in Edson. He attended elementary school at St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Boyd, high school at Stanley Boyd High School and he earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. From there he continued on to earn his master’s degree in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. He explains that he was a December graduate from the university, so at the start of 1990, he began as a substitute teacher in Eau Claire before coming to Stanley-Boyd. “I applied for several teaching positions and had two offers. It was an easy decision to come back to a school district with which I was familiar. I initially thought I would be here for about five years, but I ended up staying!”
After graduating high school in 1984, Patrick moved to Eau Claire where he lives with his wife of thirty-seven years, Julie and their three dogs. Together they have two grown sons who also live in Eau Claire. Patrick enjoys spending most of his free time at home with his family, but he also enjoys golfing, going out to eat, and going to the movies with his wife. Once a week, he joins his sons online to play games.
Patrick enjoys his current position at Stanley-Boyd and has a hard time choosing what he enjoys the most about his job. “It would be easier to say what I don’t enjoy because I enjoy almost everything I do as the library media specialist and distance learning coordinator. The difference between working as a classroom teacher and being a librarian is analogous to being a parent versus a grandparent. I get to experience all the students’ fun energy and enthusiasm and send them on their way before it gets overwhelming. I might get a bit silly occasionally, so I imagine they might leave with more energy than they arrived with.”
Additionally, Patrick also loves organizing and straightening which comes in handy at his current position. “So, a room full of books is a pretty good fit for me,” he comments.
Patrick explains that he first entertained the idea of becoming a teacher in fifth or sixth grade. “I was easily bored and thought about one day making learning more entertaining and engaging way back then. I forgot about it for a few years, and it wasn’t until my second attempt at college that I recalled that moment in fifth grade and immediately got excited about the prospect of fulfilling that dream. I had a lot of high school teachers who inspired me, particularly the English teachers.”
He explains that if he hadn’t become a teacher, he may have become a comedian. “Growing up, I had a strong interest in stand-up comedy. I remember having an assignment in elementary school to do a speech on our role model. I chose Rich Little. I don’t think my classmates knew who he was at eleven years old. I recall recording comedians on the Merv Griffin show with a cassette recorder and then listening to them repeatedly, studying their word choices and phrasing. Other than comedy, I had times when I was interested in being a lawyer, actor, and veterinarian. Being a teacher makes sense when you consider most of those interests. Thankfully, I’ve never had to channel my inner veterinarian in the classroom.”
Having shared his extensive knowledge with his students for many years, Patrick details some of the lessons that his students have taught him as well. “The first thing you learn from your students is patience or you don’t last long in education. They’ve also taught me that learning is a lot easier when you have a smile on your face.”
He describes the ways that every student has impacted his life throughout his career in education. “Teaching is about the relationships you develop with students because the motivation to learn is often tied to that relationship’s quality. We walk the line between success and failure in a learning environment, or no learning happens. So, as we attempt to connect the known to the unknown, students will take bigger risks of being wrong when they trust the person teaching them. Because these relationships are authentic and based on trust, almost every student I’ve taught has impacted my life. How they have impacted my life is as varied as their fingerprints,” Patrick explains.
Being a teacher and educator for so many years, there are bound to be changes in education and learning styles and Patrick describes the changes that he has experienced, “The biggest changes are in the use of technology, accountability for learning, and professional collaboration. We didn’t even have a telephone in our classrooms when I began teaching and now there are more devices in each room than there are people. When I say accountability for learning, I mean that the idea now is that failing isn’t going to be one of the options available to students, and that can concern some people who hear about it. It is better to think of it as the idea that when a student fails, it is despite our best efforts to prevent it from happening. It’s what you would expect from a doctor or dentist, and it’s what you should expect from a professional educator as well.”
He continues, “The final change I mentioned is professional collaboration. Today, we spend a lot more time diagnosing problems and solutions in the learning process as teams. I think it’s been great to have the systems in place to encourage this kind of collaboration to ensure that we take advantage of everyone’s intuition, experience, and creativity.”
He shares that the hardest challenge for all educators is creating lessons that effectively challenge all students in the room. “If you have twenty-five students, you have twenty-five ability levels, several optimum learning styles, and many different attention spans. It’s like a Vegas act with twenty-five plates spinning on dowel rods and managing to keep them all from falling to the ground. When tasks are too easy or too difficult for students, there’s no point in completing them. It’s why teaching is an art.”
Patrick wishes that people saw more of the positive aspects of schools and educators and not just the negative events. “The news and social media filter out the usual and broadcast the unusual, so when you see an article about the negative things that happen in schools, it’s the exception and not the rule.” Speaking on the roles of educators he says, “We are regular people interested in helping children reach their full potential. Certainly, when pushing yourself continuously to improve, things do not always work perfectly. This is why we meet weekly to discuss how we can improve our content and instruction as teachers.”
Patrick mentions that he loves when former students take a moment to say ‘hi’ and share a memory. As a teacher he enjoyed seeing students get out of their comfort zone and express themselves differently than they normally do.
“There were a handful of times when my goofy behavior brought a shy, quiet student out of their shell and they did something risky in class that was completely out of character, and they did it with a smile as the entire room cheered.” He adds, “Tim participating in “Disco Vocabulary” comes to mind. Those were great times and always make me a little misty-eyed when I remember them.”
As Patrick reflects on the extent of his career and prepares to start a new time in his life, he says, “The end of a journey is always a natural time to look back and make sense of it all, with the advantage of employing the wisdom you acquired along the way. I often compare a career to hiking up a mountain. The effort put in provides a whole different perspective as you near the summit. Looking back at the path I’ve been on for the last 34 years is breathtaking. It plays out in my mind like a montage in a movie and most of it is in the form of smiles, laughs, and hugs rather than lessons and assignments. Above all emotions stands gratefulness. I am grateful to the students who enriched my days, and to their parents who were so supportive and appreciative of my unique way of delivering instruction. I am especially grateful to the Stanley-Boyd School District for the opportunities I have been given to grow professionally in so many varied roles here.”
Educators like Patrick Marion who devote their entire lives to their profession are what make the Stanley-Boyd Area School District unique and successful. The students, parents, and community are appreciative of the hard work and care that Patrick has given as a longtime educator for Stanley-Boyd.
