“Miss Kay” Harbison has two goals in life: to make a brighter future for her students and to give them a pride in their past.
At Summer Shade Elementary School, she teaches reading to students in grades 1 through 8, using no textbooks.
“I teach them what I know they are ready to learn,” she said. “but at times it gets so chaotic that I find myself teaching down to my gifted class and above the heads of my average kids.”
Hertiny room is filled with maps, countless class projects and mimeographs piled into cardboard boxes.
“I’m a pack rat,” she said, “Nothing gets thrown away When it
gets crowded, we just beat a path through it.”
But no dust settles on the stacks. Miss Kay reuses materials from years past — a trait of a dedicated historian. She’s a missionary of the past.
Kay Harbison is a leader of the Metcalfe County Junior Historical Society a third-generation native who works to save Edmonton’s history.
“Very little is written down about this county’s past, and it’s rapidly disappearing,” she said.
Collecting the disappearing history keeps her busy.
“If I’m not teaching, I’m out surveying graveyards or something else, trying to get it all down.”
She involves her students in their heritage. “I try to incorporate
their reading and grammar lessons into research projects on
the county. It gives them a sense of belonging.”
