Distinguished former M-A teacher Dr. Harry Wong passes away

Editor’s note: To baby boomers who attended Menlo-Atheron High School, Dr. Harry Wong was the quintessential biology teacher  — and one of my favorites! We caught up with him in 2016.

Legendary educator and former Menlo-Atherton High School biology teacher, Dr. Harry K. Wong. passed away peacefully in the early morning hours on February 20, having lived his perfect day hours before sitting at his computer creating. He was 91.

Dr. Wong was passionate about helping teachers be the most effective they could be for their students. He was able to take the research on how to teach and translate it into actionable, practical strategies to use in the classroom.

He began his teaching career in the 1950s as a biology teacher at Menlo-Atherton High School in Atherton. Soon he would be singled out by Yale University for the Distinguished Teacher Award and its $1000 stipend. His students far exceeded others in the country with their award-winning ability, securing over 100 awards during his tenure.

Prof. Paul DeHart Hurd of Stanford University said of his talent: “When a student with one year of biology wins out over more experienced competition, you look at him. But when such students keep on winning year after year, you look at their teacher.”

The secret to his students’ success was featured in a 1965 Reader’s Digest story, He Teaches Kids to Teach Themselves. In 1971, Prentice Hall hired him to write a highly successful science textbook series for students, Ideas and Investigations in Science.

Invited to present at professional meetings to share his methods propelled the next phase of his career. His meeting rooms were packed and overflowed. People would arrive an hour early just for the chance to get a seat. He presented with humor, wisdom, and believability, empowering educators with the ability to make a positive difference in their classrooms. He gave nearly 4,500 presentations to over 1.5 million people.

Overwhelmed with speaking invitations, one of his speeches was recorded in 1983 and released as a four-cassette series, How to Be a Super Successful Teacher. They were stored in a spare shower, and in the evenings, he would fulfill orders.

Audiences just didn’t want to hear Harry Wong; they wanted to see him in action. He produced an eight-part video series, The Effective Teacher, which won a Classic Telly Video Award as the Best Education Video for the past twenty years.

In 1991, he and his wife of forty-three years, Rosemary T. Wong, wrote THE First Days of School, the culmination of their research into what it takes to make an impact in the classroom, their years of success in the classroom, and the stories of successful teachers shared with them during their visits to schools around the world. It is the best-selling book ever in education, with 4.5 million copies sold.

The book is used in thousands of school districts, in over 120 countries, in over 2,100 college classrooms, and is available in ten languages. Now in its fifth edition, it has taught generations of teachers how to be successful and effective. The level of intensity, longevity, and impact of Harry K. Wong is unmatched in education. Ask Harry Wong his profession, and he will proudly respond with, “a teacher.” He was a master teacher of teachers.

His latest book released this year, THE New Teacher Induction Book: How to Recruit, Train, and Retain New Teachers, was a passionate plea to administrators to help teachers be successful the moment they enter their classroom and stop the teacher turnover and shortage dilemma facing schools today.

A San Francisco Chinatown native born on June 1, 1932, and a longtime Bay Area resident, he graduated from the prestigious Lowell High School and pursued his life’s work with an undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a doctorate from Brigham Young University in Utah, where he received the Alumni Achievement Award. His three children, four grandchildren, and his wife know of his devotion to his family, his generous spirit, and passion for dining around the world.

A traffic jam in Ethiopia made for a car ride that would change his life. Learning from a traveling companion of a school she built in Cambodia, he and his wife soon formed a non-profit, The First Days of School Foundation , and built and financed the first ever school in the jungles of Cambodia. Starting with 125 primary and elementary students in 2001, the school is now a K–12 school with 1002 students.

The Wong Meanreth School would welcome your donation in remembrance of Harry K. Wong. Harry firmly believed that education was the key to reaching one’s potential for any child.

Photo by Harry and Rosemary Wong by Betsy Sergeant Snow (c) 2016