The word “GOAT” (Greatest Of All Time) gets thrown around everywhere nowadays (It’s always gonna be Jordan by the way). In most cases different arguments can be made for different people or teams to be considered the GOAT of whatever they do or did.
That is until you come to the question of “Who’s the greatest educator of all time at HISD?” Her name is Carolyn “Bertie” Baker. You won’t find anybody that graduated from HHS between 1981 and 2015 (Probably even after 2020) that doesn’t light up when they talk about Mrs. Baker.
She taught in Arkansas for about 20 years before coming to Hooks in 1981 & “retiring” from full time teaching in 2015 although she was known to take money at the baseball and softball games until the last few years. I can remember both of my sisters (Class of 87 & Class of 90) both talking about her class like it was an honor just to be there.
They were right - Senior Year is a special year and at HHS between 1981 and 2015 part of what made it so special was that you had the privilege of being taught by Mrs. Baker. I wasn’t in the honors class and the effort I gave her was pretty pathetic compared to the education that she offered me, but her class was still special even to underachievers like myself.
That’s just one of the amazing things about Mrs. Baker - she loved us all and she never lowered the bar. I spent pretty much every day of high school figuring out how to do the bare minimum to simply get by, and I’ve spent just about every day since high school trying to make up for my lack of effort.
I know how deeply she impacted my life from the Fall of 94 to the Spring of 95, so I’m in awe when I think about the thousands and thousands of lives that were forever changed by her unconditional love and her will to simply not lower the bar below what you and I were capable of.
Recently HHS had their Annual Watermelon Supper. It’s a long standing tradition where the community gets to meet the football players, cheerleaders, volleyball players, band members, and coaches. One of her former students, Stephanie (Earnest) Welch who works at Autumn Wind had the idea to bring Mrs. Baker to be the guest of honor.
Mrs. Beverly Shannon (HHS Principal) introduced Mrs. Baker and presented her with a team signed football. Of course, she received a standing ovation because…she’s the GOAT. Mrs. Baker spends her days at the Autumn Wind Assist-ed Living Facility now. It’s been reported that you can still catch her teaching every now and then.
I only have fond memories of my 4 years at HHS. I had amazing teachers that worked so hard to offer me an amazing education that I refused to accept because of flat out laziness. Thank-fully, God changed my life a year after I graduated and I’ve had the opportunity to tell those teachers just how much I truly appreciated them.
Like so many other teachers, she helped shape the lives of kids that grew up to become husbands, wives, doctors, lawyers, coaches, teachers, ministers, factory workers, government workers, nurses, writers, professors, and the list goes on and on. She didn’t want you to be like your siblings or other students.
She wanted you to work hard and become the very best you could at whatever you did in life. She’s been way more successful than she’ll ever realize and I think that’s true for the vast majority of teachers.
Mrs. Carolyn “Bertie” Baker - The Undisputed GOAT of Hooks High School…..
