Two Peas in a PodCrazy About Education

Dear Readers,
Today’s article will share story about a lively man named Martin (Marty) Raskin. He lives on the opposite coast of the U.S., on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Several months ago, we were introduced by Debbie-Schaefer Jacobs, the Smithsonian’s curator who oversees Education at The National Museum of American History. Why? Because we share a passion for teaching and learning and for education artifacts, plus we are convinced that this nation should have a National Museum About Education. We are, indeed, “two peas in a pod.” Read on to learn about this fellow, another person who is crazy about education!

When Marty retired in 1998 he began to amass an astonishing collection of educational memorabilia. For over thirty years, he has invested many thousands of dollars and has turned his spacious apartment into a gallery for thousands of special objects. His building also has a storage area for large pieces. Many gems from Marty’s collection have been on display in the lobby of the United Federation of Teachers office in Manhattan and at the city Reliquary Museum in Brooklyn, New York. He has also enjoyed the interest of many visitors, including those from the Museum of the City of New York, the N.Y. Historical Society, and (soon) the Smithsonian.


For an overview of the passionate collector and some of his treasures, please enjoy the following articles. Marty has a desk from his very own childhood classroom. At great expense, he is proud to own an antique dunce chair with grooves on the foot rest to show it was probably occupied many times. Many of his artifacts have been featured at events and meetings. He is now passionate about finding a permanent home for the collection, hopefully where visitors across the nation can reminisce, investigate the past, and see ways to forge a better future for a nation devoted to educating all its citizens.

• New York 1 T.V. (May 21, 2019)                                                                        
  
• Retired NYC Teacher, A Curator Of Public School Memorabilia https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2019/05/22/retired-nyc-teacher-a-curator-of-public-school-memorabilia
• New York Times (May 22, 2018)                                                                      
  
• ​Retired Teacher Is Old School And He Has The Dunce Chain To Prove It https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/20/nyregion/nyc-schools-collector.html

• American Federation of Teachers (August 30, 2018)                                           “A Tribute to School Days”                                                              https://aftvoices.org/a-tribute-to-school-days-22c385b2d043
• New York Times (March 31, 2010)                                                            “Amassing A Shrine to His Old School”                                 https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/31/nyregion/31collector.html

Something that MOTAL admires, but does not have, is this quotation that hangs in Raskin’s office, mounted in bronze on wood. The author is unknown. 


The greatest teacher
The meek and the lowly
The ribald and the rude
He took them as he found them
And he did them all good


. . . . .
 
Similar, but different: The MOTAL collection was initiated at the Nagel “Rehirement” Party in 2006 when Greta retired and began work on the first exhibition. The gifts people brought were artifacts that THEY thought belonged in a Museum of Teaching and Learning, and they told why. Those artifacts are in the MOTAL headquarters mini-museum, in a storage unit, and (yes) preserved at the Nagel home. Over the years, artifacts have continued to arrive, donated by people from near and far. In a past article we shared how The Museum of Teaching and Learning’s collection has many objects like those in the Smithsonian’s curated education collection at the National Museum of American History. However, when MOTAL may have one of a certain piece, NMAH has many (many, many). MOTAL is pleased to feature its artifacts, one-by-one in trustworthy articles that describe the object’s use, origins, and impacts. The online platforms include Network for Good, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. In-person artifact visits at the MOTAL headquarters and at events across Southern California will resume after the pandemic eases its grip.


Submitted by Greta Nagel
MOTAL President and CEO