Judy M. Nash: Educational Mentor by Linda Harris Sittig

If we are lucky, each of us gets blessed at least once in our lives with a mentor. A mentor guides us to be the best we can, and encourages us when we fall flat on our face, and steps back out of the limelight so we can shine.

That person for me was Judy M. Nash.

Born in 1935 in New York City, Judy inherited the Yankee spirit of ‘can do’ but added to that the belief that everyone has the right to dream their impossible dream.

Judy earned her undergraduate degree and teacher certification from Marymount College in New York and then pursued a Masters and Doctorate at Catholic University in Washington D.C. She began her professional career in Fairfax County, Virginia, teaching at an elementary school and, within five years, became an assistant principal.

After three years as an assistant, Judy then became a principal. She received one of the oldest, most in need of renovation, elementary schools in Fairfax County. Undaunted, she set about to change the dreary building into a beacon of education and a safe place for children. She was rewarded seven years later by being given a brand-new school to open – Fox Mill Elementary in Herndon, Virginia.

And that is where I came into her story.

I had been a reading teacher at the middle school and high school levels. Because of my graduate degree, I had mostly taught reluctant readers, students who can read but choose not to.

Through trial and error, I learned that riveting stories could persuade students to pick up a book. They only needed to be introduced to the right kinds of stories. But after eleven years, I wanted to try something new.

A good friend who happened to be Judy’s secretary mentioned that I should apply to be the new Fox Mill reading teacher. “But I’ve only ever taught middle school and high school,” I replied.

“You should at least interview. You’ll find that Judy Nash is not your typical principal.”

So, I agreed. I walked into the newly constructed school office at Fox Mill and immediately noticed that all the telephones were yellow. No one in 1980 had yellow phones in schools.

The interview was relatively normal. I picked up right away that Judy was a bright woman who did not shy away from challenges and who had the best interest of the students as her primary goal.

She had my resume on her desk but did not mention the obvious fact that I had never taught elementary school. She concluded the interview by asking me why I thought I would be a good fit at Fox Mill.

I answered that I had spent 11 years teaching reluctant learners and many students who still read at a 3rd or 4th-grade level, even though they were middle and high schoolers.

She countered with, how successful was I?

I replied that I could brag that I had raised test scores, but I thought it was more important that I had turned those students onto reading, hopefully as in lifelong readers.

She thanked me for the interview and said she’d be in contact. Which is the polite way of saying she wasn’t sure if she would offer me the job.

However, a week later, she called and offered me the position. I thanked her and wanted to know why she was willing to take a chance on a secondary teacher to teach reading at her school. She answered, “Because you have a passion for children and reading.”

And so, my odyssey as an elementary reading teacher began. As I worked with Judy, she continually nudged me to seek out new ideas. When I said we should join R.I.F. (Reading is Fundamental) so every student in our building would be able to start their own home library, she didn’t bat an eye. “Figure it out, and I’ll support you.”

When I gently suggested that we could revamp the fourth-grade social studies curriculum to mix literature with stories to bring history to life, she gave me the go-ahead.

When reading in the home was being touted by professionals, Judy asked if we could design a school-wide reading incentive program. A week later, I stepped into her office to announce I wanted to contact Kermit the Frog to be our mascot for the program.

The program, Reading in a Rainbow, was a huge success, and Judy found us airtime on a local Fairfax TV station to bring about further awareness of the importance of parents reading with their children.

For the next three years, I grew exponentially as an educator under her mentorship. At first, she suggested I attend professional educational conferences, and then the next year urged me to submit applications to be a presenter at those same conferences.

What made Judy Nash so special? In words from her obituary….she was a dreamer, an adventurer, and an educator who emboldened her students (and teachers) to live their dreams.

As an educator, her own odyssey took her from Barcelona to Boston, to the U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, and finally as a director of education in Newark, Delaware. Along the way, she encouraged both children and adults to become the best they could be.

Irish to the core, she cooked corned beef and cabbage every St. Patrick’s Day for her staff. And she had a love for the sea, sailing whenever she could find the time.

Judy had an energy that drew people to her, and she had a love of life that was contagious.

As I start 2021, I look back on the Strong Women I was graced with in life and count Judy Nash among them. She encouraged me to love my chosen career and always look for new ways of inspiring children.

Judy passed in 2014 after a courageous battle with dementia, but she left behind a legacy that touched thousands of lives.

Judy M. Nash, my epitome of a Strong Woman.

~ Linda

You can also catch me on Twitter @LHsittig, my web page www.lindasittig.com, or on Amazon at www.amzn.com/19405530. My three novels featuring strong women from the past are available at bookstores and online. Cut From Strong Cloth, Last Curtain Call, and Counting Crows. Wishing everyone health and happiness in the new year.