For 51 of the 60 years he’s drawn breath, Tim Toth has been a Monroe Trojan.
A 1979 Monroe High School graduate, Toth returned to Monroe Public Schools just a few months after graduating from Michigan State University in 1983 to accept a position as a substitute special education teacher.
Short-term subbing quickly turned into long-term subbing, which turned into a full-time position that Toth accepted in the fall of 1984 and will relinquish nearly 37 years later when he officially retires on Wednesday.
“It’s going to be quite an adjustment,” Toth said. “I walked through the door of Riverside Elementary school at age 5. For 51 of my 60 years I’ve been part of Monroe Public Schools, either as a student or as a staff member of some kind… I’m very thankful that I had the opportunity to work for Monroe Schools.”
Toth wore many hats over the almost four decades he’s been a special education teacher. When he started out teaching, he was in a resource room environment where he gave specialized instruction to students with disabilities.
Eventually MPS transitioned away from the resource room structure, integrating students with disabilities into the traditional classroom environment while installing special education teachers like Toth in the room as co-teachers to work with any and all students who might be struggling with a particular assignment or subject.
“I was there to offer accommodations, and support and encouragement, and I would also teach as well,” Toth said. “…I’ve taught lots of different things.”
Toth said he always took the approach that any student could do anything they set their mind to, regardless of whatever physical or learning disabilities they might have had.
“My kids would have reading, writing or math difficulties, but they were always very capable,” he said. “One of the things I always stressed was if you work hard, regardless of what your particular difficulty is, you can go as far as you want to go.”
That mentality is born out of personal experience. Toth was born with cerebral palsy, a congenital disorder that can affect movement, muscle tone and/or posture.
Toth stressed that he’s always strived to downplay his disability, even as its gradually affected his balance and mobility over the years.
“People tell me I’m pretty clear that I like to do things myself, thank you very much,” he said. “That’s kind of the vibe I tried to give my students; I never wanted to make a big deal about anybody needing help, but if someone needed help I was always there to give it. I always encouraged people to do as much as they could…”
You don’t need to look any further than the front entryway of Toth’s house to see the impact he made on the students he’s taught.
In that entryway sits an umbrella stand, inside of which rests several intricately carved wooden canes. More of these functional pieces of art can be found in Toth’s coat closet, and all of them were made by students he has taught over the years.
What was a long-held tradition among Toth’s students began in the late 1980s when one noticed their beloved teacher struggling with his balance. The student made the cane in wood shop class, leaving it near Toth’s desk. When Toth came into the classroom, the youth gently said “You know, you should probably use that Mr. Toth.”
“It was something he made in wood shop class, and then in the following years it was on the list of accepted projects in wood shop for the kids to do,” Toth said. “I would get two or three a year, because that was their project. I have some really nice ones.”
Toth has long been a staple of MPS outside of the classroom setting as well, serving as the announcer for the high school’s softball and football teams since the late 1990s and early 2000s, respectively. He recently relinquished the role for softball, but intends to keep calling football games for the foreseeable future.
“I took last year off (of announcing football due to the pandemic),” Toth said. “Because we downsized the booth, I decided I would step away and let other people continue to work. Now that the pandemic is over, I’m coming back. I’m pretty excited about doing that… I really like sports, I like being involved with the community, I like the people I work with and that all sort of ties everything together.”
Besides continuing to call Trojan football games, Toth isn’t sure what the future holds for him. Right now he’s focused on enjoying his summer, which no doubt will involve plenty of time to reflect fondly on a lengthy career dedicated to helping every student reach their full potential.
“Monroe Public Schools has been very, very good to me,” Toth said. “It has provided me with a great education, and I have worked with some tremendous, tremendous people over the years. I think that is the best part of our district, is that we have some very committed staff members; Everybody is helpful, and I can’t think of a more pleasant situation to be in. Many times being a special education teacher, people would say ‘Oh you’re being so helpful to all of your students and your supportive of all students.’ But those students and their families have also supported me…
“I’ll always be a Monroe Trojan, and I’m proud of my affiliation, but it’s time for me to step away and try to do something else.”
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