From soldier to teacher, Shane Larkin shows the way it can be done

Shane Larkin has a powerful story. And it is one that others who have walked in his boots need to hear.

Larkin was a kid who struggled to graduate from high school in a small northern Pennsylvania town and turned to the U.S. Army because his options were limited.

The story started to come out Thursday night when Larkin was named the 2017 Muscogee Educational Excellence Foundation Muscogee County School District Teacher of the Year.

Over the next year, we will certainly hear more of his amazing journey from combat veteran to decorated educator.

Larkin has been an educator in the Muscogee County School District for nine years, teaching at Arnold Middle School and now Early College Academy.

For 10 years, he fought for his country. But it was in Kosovo that he found his calling when he taught English to Serbian students.

Sometimes the light blub turns on in the most unlikely of places.

“I loved almost everything about being an infantry squad leader,” he wrote, “but I felt completely comfortable and inspired while teaching those students for several hours a week. I realized that even in a combat zone, the school made me feel comfortable and safe like when I was in high school. More importantly, it was truly rewarding for me to be part of making a safe zone for those kids who were not safe to even go into neighboring towns. It was at that point I realized the true meaning and power of education.”

He could not be more right about the power of education. But what is equally as powerful is when those education opportunities are delivered by people like Larkin. The messenger needs to be as strong as the message.

Former Muscogee County School Superintendent Guy Sims was there Thursday night as Larkin received his honor in a room full of outstanding teachers. He picked up on the opportunity that may excess to use Larkin’s previous military service to lure more soldiers into the classroom.

“It is a wonderful opportunity to involve him with other soldiers who are close to completing their assignments and leaving the Army,” Sims said on Friday. “I am certain there are a lot of people like him and they need to see what is attainable.”

One of the duties of the Teacher of the Year is go into schools and classrooms and motivate others. No doubt, Larkin will do that. But he should also be on post at Fort Benning talking to those staff sergeants and others who are in the same position now that he was in a decade ago. That is where his story could have the most reach as others separate from the Army look for the next career.

The Army spends a lot of effort preparing soldiers to re-enter the civilian world. Most of them know of the educational opportunities, but reading about them is one thing. Seeing how Larkin obtained multiple degrees from Columbus State University in the transition from soldier to teacher is another thing.

As Sims said, they see it is attainable.

The beauty of Larkin’s story is he knows every kid is not on his way to college, but the job of a teacher is work and make certain that every kid is on the way to something productive.

“To improve education we’ve got to invest in multiple paths, including more opportunities for vocational education,” he wrote. “The purpose of education is to empower students with knowledge and to create as many opportunities as possible for their future success. That’s our role as a community, and it’s my mandate as a teacher.”

He has such a great opportunity to be more than a teacher. He can be a beacon that brings soldiers from the Army to the classroom.

Spend any time at the various schools on Fort Benning and you will hear someone use the phrase: “That’s what right looks like.”

Shane Larkin is exactly what right looks like. And there is an incredible opportunity to use Larkin to show other soldiers what right looks like when they retire.

This story was originally published May 5, 2017 at 5:56 PM with the headline "From soldier to teacher, Shane Larkin shows the way it can be done."