marge martiny

All in the Family at St. Charles School in Arlington

By Suzanne Till
Special to the HERALD
(From the Issue of 12/21/06)

Marge Martiny lives and teaches by two statements that were stenciled on the wall of her St. Charles classroom in Arlington years ago by a former student: 1. Patience is a virtue. 2. Offer it up.
Some teachers are long remembered because they touched lives in a special way, whether with a gentle push to try harder, a harsh lesson in the consequences of actions, or words of encouragement. Martiny is one of those teachers.
In a recent eighth-grade social studies class, Martiny leads the discussion on the Civil War. She is alive, animated, engaged. So are her 23 students. Eager hands fly up to answer her questions.
For the past 24 years, Martiny has been teaching at St. Charles. This year she teaches seventh- and eighth-grade religion and social studies, art and spelling for a total of six classes daily.
What keeps her going? “They do,” she responds without hesitation, looking out over the rows of empty desks after class. “I grow by watching them grow.”
Born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Maryland, she always wanted to be a teacher. “Every year is a fresh start, every class is different and every student is changed by the end of the school year,” she says. “It’s exciting and always a challenge to keep up.”
Sister Benedict Kesock, O.S.B., school principal for the past 30 years, hired Martiny in 1983 as a part-time physical education teacher, but “Sister B” recognized Martiny’s gift for teaching almost immediately. So the following year, Martiny began teaching full time, and she still wears many hats. Most of the 25 faculty members at St. Charles multi-task to fill the many needs that arise in a constantly changing academic environment. “We all do what needs to be done,” said Martiny.
Martiny’s days at St. Charles are full. In addition to teaching, she has an eighth-grade homeroom and is curriculum coordinator for social studies, literature and the sacraments.
She worked with Sister Benedict to begin a pre-school program and she and her husband founded the St. Charles basketball teams. She coached the girls and he coached the boys. Today, her son coaches; the legacy continues.
In 1999, Sister Benedict appointed Martiny assistant principal. The leadership role has provided new opportunities to grow as an educator. Martiny is most proud of the Teacher Mentoring program where seasoned teachers are paired with a new teacher to share wisdom and problem-solve. She is also enrolled in the Catholic Leadership program at Marymount University and expects to receive her master’s degree in May.
“There is a special unbreakable bond that forms when we have done our jobs,” she says, and it is especially meaningful when former students come back to visit, to teach or when they send their own children to St. Charles.
Every day she tries to be a positive role model for them, and prays often to St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton for guidance, who like herself was both an educator and a mother.
Martiny encourages her students to remember her two phrases: 1. Patience is a virtue. 2. Offer it up.
It’s good advice. It seems to work for Martiny, her students and the entire St. Charles family.