Last modified: Wednesday, May 7, 2008 3:28 PM CDT Beene spends time with 'prez' By Amanda Compton-Ortiz/amanda@dctribune.com For Center Hill Middle-High School teacher Cheryl Beene, teaching is not just a job, it’s a mission. “I think it’s what the Lord put me on the earth to do,” Beene said. Beene recently returned from a week-long stay in Washington, D.C., where she and other state teachers of the year had an opportunity to come face to face with President Bush in the Oval Office of the White House. “It was amazing,” Beene said of the experience. “It was one of those moments in time where you’re not sure if it is really happening or not.” Beene’s husband, senior vice president of BancorpSouth bank in Olive Branch, and their two children, Corrie Beene, 25, a fifth-grade teacher at Horn Lake Intermediate School, and Neal Beene, 28, sports editorial assistant at the Commercial Appeal, joined her in Washington, as did Beene’s brother, Al Fenger of Oxford, who works in human resources at the University of Mississippi. “The travel and week together was truly a once in a lifetime experience for me and my entire family,” Beene said. After being introduced to Bush in his office, Beene said each teacher of the year was separately photographed with the president, whom she described as “warm, friendly, and casual,” and also had the chance to shake hands with U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. The teachers then met for a special ceremony in the Rose Garden, where president Bush praised them for being role models for other educators. “The president was standing at a podium and I was sitting in the third row. It was a beautiful day. At some point, I just went giddy all over,” Beene said,”because we, as teachers, so often work hard without feeling a lot of reward. I am so proud to represent all of the teachers of Mississippi for all of the hard work they do. There are thousands of other teachers that could have been in my place. “All of this has definitely been a humbling experience. It is an honor and a privilege. I will savor every moment.” Beene, 55, is the 2007 Mississippi Teacher of the Year. She teaches family and consumer science to ninth- and 10th-graders at the Olive Branch area school. “I love it here and I love to teach,” Beene said. “I truly care about every child. To me, they are not just students, they become a part of me. I want to help each and every one of them reach their goals and achieve the highest quality of life possible.” Aside from her compassion and dedication to her students, Beene also firmly believes in hands-on education. “In my class, we cover a lot topics such as career development and setting goals that they can use in life to become successful,” she said. “So I don’t like to teach them just straight from the books. I also like to do a lot of activities that allow them to apply their knowledge outside of the classroom.” Though she has no real family history in education, Beene credits her mother for her successful career in teaching. “My mother was a huge part of me being what I am,” Beene said. “It was her work ethic: Give as much as you can give, be strong, and work hard. She also gave me high morals and standards and taught to me to be positive and to live my life as a Christian.” Beene holds a Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts degrees from the University of Mississippi. She started her 33-year teaching career as a home economics and science teacher at Itawamba Agricultural High School in Fulton, Miss. She went on to teach the same subject at Lawhon Junior High School in Tupelo. Before coming to DeSoto County Schools in 2002, she taught home economics for 15 years for the South Panola School District at Batesville Junior High and and South Panola High schools in Batesville. During her tenure there, she represented the district as alternate teacher of the year. She started teaching in DeSoto County at Horn Lake Elementary School and then went on to spend three years teaching health at Southaven High School. She has been at Center Hill Middle-High since it opened a couple years ago. “I have loved teaching all of these years,” Beene said. “There have been very few days that I’ve come in to work and not been happy.” Beene said she is retiring this spring but has plans to stay connected to the school by mentoring to younger teachers. While in Washington, Beene said she also attended the National Teacher of the Year conference, where teachers share their knowledge and concerns and discuss various topics such as their role as teachers of the year. The group will come together again in July for International Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., where they will dress in costume for a parade of states and have the opportunity to meet teachers of the year from 25 different countries. During the conference, Beene also attended a White House gala, the National Gallery of Portraits, Smithsonian workshops, and technology workshops provided by the SMARTer Kids Foundation, which gave each state teacher of the year a $14,000 SMART board. Beene said she has decided to donate her SMART board to her school.