National Teacher’s Day honors those hard working, patient and understanding people entrusted to teach our children. An Arkansas teacher, Mrs. Mattye Whyte Woodridge, began corresponding with political and education leaders as early as 1944 about the need for a national day honoring teachers. One of the leaders she wrote to was Eleanor Roosevelt, who persuaded the 81st Congress to proclaim a National Teacher Day in 1953.

In the late 1970s, the National Education Association, its Indiana and Kansas state affiliates, and its local affiliate in Dodge City, Kansas, all lobbied Congress on behalf of creation of a national day celebrating teachers. Congress declared March 7, 1980 as National Teacher Day for that year only.

NEA and its affiliates continued to observe Teacher Day on the first Tuesday in March until 1985, when NEA and the National PTA established Teacher Appreciation Week as the first full week of May. The NEA Representative Assembly then voted to make the Tuesday of that week National Teacher Day.

Note: This holiday is one of Calendar Mine's over 500 built-in observances.

See Also

Holiday Catalogue

American (USA) Observances