Izzo named to National Teachers Hall of Fame

Walking into a gymnasium full of cheering children and educators at Davison Avenue School last Friday, to attend what she thought was a pep rally before state testing starts this week, fifth-grade teacher Marguerite Izzo couldn’t seem to process how all the pomp and circumstance was actually meant for her — a celebration of her induction into the National Teachers Hall of Fame.

“It’s humbling to know the amount of influence you have on your students,” said Izzo, who has dedicated over three decades to education. “The more effort you put into anything, the more you’re rewarded.”

Izzo, 58, who started teaching at Davison Avenue three years ago, was nominated for a coveted seat in the Hall of Fame — a non-profit based in Emporia, Kan., that annually recognizes five of the most outstanding pre-K to 12th-grade teachers in the country — by colleagues and students who had written letters to the organization since last September.

Fifth-grader Jahzeel Caban, 10, one of Izzo’s students this year, felt compelled a few weeks ago to write a page-long letter about her teacher.

“[Ms. Izzo] makes us understand our work and always treats us like scholars,” said Jahzeel, whose brother was also in Izzo’s class years ago. “She’s funny, kind and caring. She treats us like perfect people.”

At the ceremony, NTHF Director Carol Strickland told Izzo that she will be flown to Washington, D.C., next month for a reception before the induction ceremony in Kansas in June. Strickland also said that, in addition to a plaque that she was presented, Izzo would receive a gold lapel pin and a ring from the NTHF, along with $1,000 worth of teaching materials from the Pearson learning company.

Davison Avenue Principal Ed Tallon told the crowd that Izzo’s induction was a “tremendous honor” for the school and the district. “She’s an inspiration to both students and faculty,” Tallon said. “She’s truly a teacher of teachers.”

After leading the young crowd in three cheers for Izzo, Malverne Superintendent Dr. James Hunderfund recognized how she serves as a motivator of staff development for spirit among teachers. “We’re never going to let her go,” Hunderfund said.

Roger Tilles, state regent for the 10th Judicial District, tested the smarts of Davison students by giving them a mock exam question about the similarity between a blizzard, a typhoon, a hurricane and an earthquake. “They’re all forces of nature, and we have one right here,” Tilles answered, referring to Izzo. “She gets to move things, push things, make things happen all on her own. No one does it better than Marguerite.”

Chris Brown, a representative of Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, presented Izzo with an official citation for her achievements in teaching.

State Assemblyman Brian Curran, Malverne Mayor Patti McDonald and Lynbrook Mayor William J. Hendrick also attended the ceremony.

Festivities included a video presentation featuring Davison students and faculty, who listed their favorite qualities and memories of Izzo, and a rendition of Pharrell Williams’s song “Happy” by Stella Crawford’s fourth-grade class, under the direction of music teacher Deanna Vitola.

When she eventually took the mike to thank the crowd, Izzo chose to motivate Davison students before they began taking a gamut of state tests this week. “This is the real deal — the most important thing is to keep trying,” she said. “You are going to do your very, very best and you’re going to do the right thing — just concentrate.”

“I hope when you grow up, you get to do a job that’s the most important,” she added. “I hope you get to work with people you love, respect and admire and people you want to be like.”

Izzo later recognized her colleagues for their dedication in contributing to the “team sport of teaching” and gave aspiring educators some advice: “Continue trying — even when you have nothing left in your gas tank."