Department of Education

I am a passionate advocate for empowering high-quality teachers. I believe that’s partly because I had a high-quality teacher who made a huge impact on my life. Helen Heller, my high school Latin teacher in Farmer, Ohio, believed in me and gave me a directive—backed by a cash gift—to go to college. I had lost my father that school year, and Mrs. Heller was just the kind of teacher I needed.