Teaching Texas history in schools is imperative: Gaylon Finklea Hecker and Marianne Odom – El Paso Times

Gaylon Finklea Hecker and Marianne Odom| Guest columnist

March is Texas History Month, and our states rich heritage is as much a path forward as a look back.

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Our hard-fought independence is observed this month with Texas Independence Day and Texas Flag Day March 2, coincidentally Sam Houstons birthday; Alamo Heroes Day March 6; and Goliad Heroes Day March 26.

Of course, we also celebrate on April 21 the defeat of Santa Anna at San Jacinto in 1836. From that day forward, the people of the Republic of Texas would forever be synonymous with bravery, honor, tenacity, guts, grit and dedication to a worthy cause. That fabled fortune spilled over into the creation of the state of Texas, the 28th to join the USA, and its shadow fell on generations to follow.

Our heroic ancestors fought to preserve the rights of Texans relative newcomers and long-established Tejanos to seek fruitful lives in this gigantic and geologically diverse state with hills, prairies, deserts, piney woods, rivers, beaches and a plateau so flat you can see forever.

Some of the states most successful natives credit, at least in part, their success to growing up in this land of possibility with a melting pot of courageous, bigger-than-life role models.

They recalled just what it was about growing up in Texas that inspired them to follow their dreams. Not surprisingly, studying Texas history ranks high in their memories.

Wharton-born newsman Dan Rather said, One of my earliest memories from first or second grade is learning all the words to Texas, Our Texas, which is the state song. And certainly, learning Texas history. Thats part of giving you a strong sense of place. We had the American flag, and we had a Texas flag. As you get older, it all fits into this good, strong sense of belonging. If you dont belong anywhere else, you belong in Texas.

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Rex Tillerson, Wichita Falls-born former CEO of ExxonMobil and secretary of state, attributed his identity to his roots.

I have a deep sense of pride in who I am as a Texan. Often, I loved to say to people in Washington, down in the Republic of Texas.

Astronaut Robert Crippen, who piloted STS-1, the first Shuttle, and commanded other shuttle flights, dreamed about soaring in the heavens as a boy in the East Texas Piney Woods.

With a pilots swagger, Beaumont-born Crippen said, I think that pride in Texas was mainly instilled in school rather than at home. I remember we studied Texas history in high school. We had to take a semester of Texas history when we went to UT.

I think I was like any other kid growing up in Texas. I was proud to be a Texan and not shy about telling people about it.

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Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, former ambassador to NATO and the first female U.S. senator from Texas, filled the seat of her great-grandfathers law partner, Thomas Rusk. Rusk was the republics secretary of war and, along with Sam Houston, one of the first two U.S. senators from Texas.

Hutchison, born in Galveston, oozes the thrill of Texas history. She thought about it constantly while she grew up. She heard the stories. She read history books. Her great-grandfather also signed the Texas Declaration of Independence, and her grandmothers neighborhood included Nacogdoches Old Stone Fort.

Weve passed it (history) down through the generations because we still have that love of Texas, Hutchison said. And its so important to continue to teach Texas history as a required course.

Dr. Lauro Cavazos, the first Hispanic appointed to a U.S. Cabinet post, shared that same love of learning Texas history in a two-room schoolhouse on the sprawling King Ranch.

My favorite subject was history. Oh, I loved it. In fact, when I was in grade school, I told one of my teachers that I liked history so much that I may teach it someday. I remember that was my first ambition before I got into biology, sciences, anatomy, health care and all that other stuff.

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Nolan Ryan, born in Refugio, still remembers the only field trip during his school days. It was to the San Jacinto Monument, and the trip was a big deal.

He said: When you dont go anywhere in your life, thats pretty special. Its been a lifelong pursuit of mine to read Texas history and to have kind of an understanding about how Texas developed.

While the Republic of Texas is the heart of our history, we know its not the beginning or the end. The diverse story of Texas encompasses dinosaurs, indigenous peoples, ranching, cattle, small towns, big cities, oil, wind, entrepreneurs, politics, footballand much more.

More recent history continues with space exploration, a literal sky-is-the-limit enterprise. Remember, Neil Armstrongs first word transmitted when the Apollo 11 lunar module touched down on the surface of the moon was Houston, as in Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.

Obviously, not all our history is that inspiring, but it is our history and Texans wear it as a badge of pride.

Teaching Texas history in schools is an imperative we must continue no matter how the winds of education flutter.

Gaylon Finklea Hecker and Marianne Odom co-authored Growing Up in the Lone Star State: Notable Texans Remember Their Childhoods, published July 2021, Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

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Teaching Texas history in schools is imperative: Gaylon Finklea Hecker and Marianne Odom - El Paso Times