“I was a C student, better in some classes, worse in others, and he didn’t leave out lesser-performing students.”
In 2006, Tim Walz, a former high school teacher, spoke to a Minnesota teachers’ group when campaigning for Congress.
(Craig Lassig / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Political professionals’ phones were buzzing and jangling all Tuesday morning with the news that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz would be Vice President Kamala Harris’s pick for her running mate. But the phones of countless Mankato West High School alums were doing the same thing. Walz taught there for nine years, while also coaching football and bringing order to the lunch room, and he left behind ardent admirers, who say his warmth, his humor, and his commitment to reach out to average students and even struggling students made him stand out in that rural Minnesota setting.
“He’s the kind of…