Seeing students as ‘whole people’

Twenty-two years into her teaching career at Kittatinny Regional High School in Newton, Mary Houghtaling sees education as a way to help students become “whole people,” realize potential and new experiences, and unlock change for themselves and society.

These attributes, along with the ardent support of students and administration for her innovative projects and inclusive teaching methods, have earned Houghtaling recognition as 2024-25 Sussex County Teacher of the Year.

The New Jersey Department of Education (DOE) names a Teacher of the Year for each of the 21 counties.

Its award citation for Houghtaling says, “As an educator, author and community leader, Mary Houghtaling embodies dedication and excellence in her career.

“She works hard to positively influence her students, encouraging them to do things they never thought possible and share gifts they did not even know they had.”

It continues, “Mary’s story epitomizes continuous growth, resilience, and an unwavering dedication to her students, education and community.”

Houghtaling, who teaches English, said, “The award acknowledges the outstanding work of our district, teachers and administrators, and students.

“On behalf of everyone, I am absolutely elated and humbled to be awarded this recognition. While in my name, it’s an honor for all of us. I’m proud to teach at our school, in Sussex County and New Jersey, where we have the best teachers.”

Houghtaling was chosen as Kittatinny’s Teacher of the Year last year, qualifying her as nominee for the county honor.

Family of teachers

Born in Yonkers, N.Y., Houghtaling grew up in Blairstown.

She now lives in Frankford with her husband, Greg, and their two children, Wyatt, 13, and Mia, 10.

She graduated from the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in Pomona with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature in 2001.

She earned a master’s in English Literature from Montclair State University in 2014 and another master’s in Holocaust and Genocide Studies from Stockton University in 2024.

She started as a physical education teacher at Reverend George A. Brown Memorial School in Sparta and after three months in 2002 found her way to teaching English at Kittatinny.

Without a formal education degree or certification, Houghtaling took the alternate route toward teacher certification while on the job. She is certified in English Literature grades 7-12.

“Teaching is in my family blood,” Houghtaling said. “My mother, Noreen Sullivan, was an elementary school teacher and dad, Dr. Art Sullivan, was a college professor. Of their seven children, three are teachers.”

At Kittatinny, Houghtaling has taught all levels from grades 9-12. She currently teaches Language and Composition to juniors and Holocaust and Genocide Studies to seniors.

She also has coached cross country and field hockey.

Since 2014, Houghtaling has been a part-time professor at Montclair State University.

Her department supervisor at Kittatinny, Carol Fishbone, said, “Mrs. Houghtaling is a seasoned educator who goes beyond teaching curriculum content. She is dedicated to nurturing the whole student, equipping them with the critical thinking and analytical skills essential for a lifetime of thoughtful decision-making and discernment.

“This is evident in her classroom, on the cross country trails, and in the Holocaust and Genocide Research Center, which she established at Kittatinny Regional High School two years ago.”

Career highlight

Houghtaling’s strong interest and empathy for the Holocaust resulted in a Mark Schonwetter Grant for Holocaust Education in 2019. In 2023 came an Alfred Lerner Fellowship, a Joan Lavine Keats Teacher’s Grant and the Human Rights Education Youth in Action Award.

While teaching a World Literature course to seniors in 2019, she did a class reading of Elie Wiesel’s “Night,” an acclaimed work based on his experiences as a Jewish prisoner in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps.

“During our reading of ‘Night,’ you could hear a pin drop in the classroom,” she said. “The students were memorized and wanted to learn more.”

In addition to speakers on the Holocaust and ongoing coursework, Houghtaling led class trips to New York’s Jewish Museum.

Momentum fell off with Covid and remote learning in 2020, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her or the program.

“With guidance from Stockton’s Holocaust and Genocide Studies program and support of our school ACP World Literature students and school administration, especially Dr. Fishbone, in 2023 we established the Holocaust and Genocide Research Center at KRHS in a library computer lab that was no longer in use,” she said.

“Soon we expanded to two rooms. It’s the only high school center of its kind in New Jersey and, to be best of my knowledge, in our nation.

“The center was inspired by a combination of our students’ quest for knowledge and my need to do something that creates real change,” Houghtaling said. “That is where the idea for the center was born, and to see it come to life has been the highlight of my teaching career.”

In attendance at the ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 19, 2023, was Maude Dahme, a Holocaust survivor, who shared her tale of endurance in the Netherlands.

At age 6, Dahme and her sister Rita were separated from their parents and sheltered by families in secluded areas. They survived the war and were reunited with their parents April 19, 1945. However, other family members died in concentration camps.

“Maude Dahme is a dear friend who helped inspire and open our center,” Houghtaling said. “She spoke to our students and did a video introduction to an Anne Frank play at school.

“In 2024, she invited me to join a trip with a group of 31 NJ DOE teachers to Holocaust sites in Germany, Poland and Amsterdam. At Auschwitz-Birkenau, we were holding hands. It was an amazing and unique experience, very emotional, with lots of bonding and learning.”

‘Knew it all along’

Houghtaling credits her foundation for learning and teaching to her parents.

“My parents always have given me and my siblings a love of learnings, room to ask questions and empathy,” she said. “Their actions, education and care were key, having provided a rock-solid foundation. I’ve been truly blessed with parents who were supportive and pushed their kids to do more. As teachers, they were the same with their students.”

When he heard about her Teacher of the Year award, her father smiled and said, “I knew it all along.”

Houghtaling said, “Education is the foundation on which all change is made. I pursue new learning actively myself. Lifelong learning cultivates curiosity, conversation and empowerment. It’s important for me to do what I preach, have my students see me as a real person - whether teaching in the classroom or coaching on the field. And the same for my kids at home.

“I want to teach them to be good human beings, caring and confident, and function as solid, successful adults. Imagine the opportunity to unlock a brighter future for young people. As a teacher, I get to be a part of that. There’s nothing better, and teaching English is a privilege.”

A self-proclaimed lover of classic literature, including Shakespeare and Russian novelist Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky, Houghtaling is inspired by the works of American novelist and editor Toni Morrison. Her works are praised for addressing the harsh consequences of racism in the United States and the Black American experience.

“Many issues addressed in classic and modern literature can be useful today,” she said. “Whether it’s leading and managing change, overcoming personal challenges and struggles, or moving society and perspectives forward, many great works and authors offer universal themes.

“They have had great impact in my life and in the classroom with students who have carried learnings forward.”

‘How cool is it’

Last year, Houghtaling felt a bit overwhelmed with teaching, master’s degree studies, opening the school’s Holocaust and Genocide Research Center, submitting essays and doing introductory work for the Sussex County Teacher of the Year, and being a wife and mother.

“One day, with a lot of stuff on my plate, I told one of my students in frustration that I had to rush off to more meetings, too much to do - I have to go here and there,” she said. “The student said innocently and off the cuff, ‘How cool is it that you get to do all that.’ Those words made my day and changed my entire perspective on getting all the things done. Each year there seems to be someone who gets me out of the vortex - family, student or colleague.”

In reflecting on her two decades-plus teaching career, Houghtaling recognizes changes to the teaching profession and her approach.

“Teaching 17-year-olds at age 23 was a challenge,” she said. “I was strict and rigid back then. We need to remember that we’re teaching a whole person with real experiences, young people who have interests and feelings and good days and bad days. When you view students as whole people, you can teach them as whole people.

“Technology, too, has brough about significant change. Laptops, cellphones, the internet can be distractions or effective tools. We need to show students to how to best use technology for learning, the benefits of reading and writing, curiosity and inquiry, and face-to-face conversation (especially post-Covid).

“Help them not to simply accept things at face value. Do the homework, research and develop their own perspectives. By being more understanding and collaborative and making students feel safe, it’s not hard to hard to reach and teach them. Once they feel safe and give you trust, you can go anywhere in teaching.”