Our Everyday Work
Educators bring life to De La Salle's vision of a good teacher

"You, then, whom God has called to this ministry, work according to the grace that has been given to you to instruct by teaching and to exhort by encouraging those who are entrusted to your care, guiding them with attention and vigilance...."
- from the First Meditation of John Baptist de La Salle

Annie Johnston || Marshall Foletta || Brother Camillus Chavez || Twelve Virtues of a Good Teacher

Marshall Foletta:
Generosity and Gentleness; Scholarship and Humor
Marshall Foletta, of the Department of Social Studies at Justin-Siena High School in Napa, is not one to boast. He was "surprised," he says, when the students and his colleagues nominated him for the Holy Spirit Award for Catholic Educator and the Distinguished Teaching Award. But the rest of the Justin-Siena community often speaks of him with awe. "I admire his talent and his mastery of his craft," says head football coach Rich Cotruvo. "He creates a learning environment in which the kids are relaxed, so they can work harder and better. By accepting them and showing them respect, he gets their attention. And by his passion for his subject, he gets them excited about learning. He's unique."

Alumnus Tim Nolan, now a pre-med major at UCLA, reports that he learned more than he had bargained for: "I thought I was a good writer, and when I handed in the draft of my ten-page history paper I expected he would say, 'This is really good.' What he said was, 'This is a good start.' Then he went line by line to show me where to expand, how to focus, what to do to improve my prose. He taught me more than history -- he taught me logic, research, and writing at the same time." The word on campus is that, self-effacing though he may be, Marshall Foletta is the real deal. A scholar of American intellectual history, he has a Ph.D. from U.C. Berkeley, and the students refer to him as "Dr. Foletta." Asked about that, one student paused to reflect: "We do call him Dr. Foletta. But not because he's ever asked for it. We just want to give him all possible respect." Marshall Foletta's scholarly work, Coming to Terms With Democracy: Federalist Intellectuals and the Search for Influence, is to be published by the University of Virginia Press.

When not writing American history or teaching it, Dr. Foletta (who also teaches journalism and is the advisor to the student newspaper, The Word) makes the extra efforts that mark the Lasallian educator.

Alumna Kristi Van Winden, now majoring in neurobiology at U.C. Davis, recalls a typical example. He invited students preparing for the Advanced Placement exam in History to meet with him in special sessions. "Every day for several weeks," says Kristi, "he spent an hour and a half with us before school to cover things that would be on the AP test." Dr. Foletta, asked about this, does not talk about his self-sacrifice but about his curricular standards: "The AP test is important, but you don't want to let it tie up your whole syllabus; you don't want your history class to become just 'teaching to the test.'"

Asked about his practice of the Twelve Virtues of the Lasallian teacher, Marshall Foletta, as the list of virtues is read out, shakes his head until the very last virtue is named: Generosity. "I think," he says slowly, "that Generosity may be something I possess as a teacher." Those who work with him are far less modest on his behalf. "Generosity, of course," says Principal Greg Schmitz. "But also Vigilance: He is profoundly aware of what the students need." "Generosity, of course," says Coach Cotruvo. "But also Patience and Restraint. And don't forget Zeal."

The students, however, credit him with a virtue that might make an unofficial Thirteenth: A Great Sense of Humor. Some students claim that the pop quintet that sang so mellowly at the Homecoming Rally this year was not the world-famous Back Street Boys but was in fact Dr. Foletta and four other teachers. A reliable student source also reports that Dr. Foletta sometimes stages "goofy talent shows" in his history classroom. One student recounted "the most hilarious day" in class: "It's the first day of class after Christmas break, and he just walks around the class looking at everyone. Suddenly he points at one guy and says in an admiring tone, 'Sweatshirt, New.' The guy says yes. Then he looks at some girl and says, 'Shoes, New.' She admits it. Dr. Foletta goes around the class, saying 'New, New, New', and everybody is just laughing. He knows that the kids want to be cool and show off their new stuff. He likes them, and he knows what's up with them."

Sounds like Humor, all right. Maybe the students don't really need to be told that it's also Vigilance and Gentleness.

Annie Johnston || Marshall Foletta || Brother Camillus Chavez || Twelve Virtues of a Good Teacher