Employment History:

Published Works:

Public Speaking Experience:

Why F is an Expert:
My love was teaching shorthand. Of course, that’s obsolete now; it’s mostly all gone. I also taught office procedures such as typing, accounting, graphic arts, business machines and English. Aside from the practical curriculum, I instilled in them a sensibility about attitudes and how they should maintain a positive attitude on the job, learn where the chain of command was and follow through. I told them to always be willing to observe and to learn new things. Cooperation with others is most important.

Best Advice:
Students should always learn new things. There is this explosion of new technology and it is important to remain abreast of this new knowledge. Learn to be cooperative on the job.

Passionate about:
The desire to learn, to read, to be honest and to be dependable. I am very active in church work, so I believe in keeping the Lord as your master to look forward to and to follow; and to always be honest. Also, be willing to give credit to other people.

Biography Excerpt:
Katherine Smith Yates, M.Ed. can remember a time when shorthand was the most prominent way to record notes – years before voice recorders become an affordable way for the masses to conduct interviews or jot down word-for-word details from important events. She can also recall sending eight of her former students to work at the NASA Johnson Space Center during the legendary Apollo 11 flight to the moon; some of those students went on to work for NASA for 20 years. Through it all, for 29 years Ms. Yates has remained a distinguished instructor in cooperative education, the melding of classroom-based enrichment with practical work experience. As a former instructor and coordinator of cooperative office training at Lee College in Baytown, Texas, she ran a cooperative training program to prepare college students for the next important step in their lives – full-time employment.

     

Cambridge Who's Who: How do you remain current in your profession?  
KATHERINE SMITH YATES M.ED.:  We went to a lot of workshops at the University of Texas and other universities, and I went to school in Boston for a month at Northeastern University, which is the mother school of co-op education. That was a great experience. I’m still taking courses because my son is the minister here at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church. He teaches at the University of New Mexico and also teaches lifelong learning courses. As a matter of fact, he is going to China with eight other ministers in October to teach a ‘four weeks to lifelong learning’ course.

What is your greatest professional accomplishment to date?
Going back to school and getting my master’s degree 18 years after graduating from college. My husband came down with tuberculosis when I had three babies. At the time, I hadn’t worked for eight years. I was a student teacher before I got married, so I took a refresher course and returned to work. I didn’t retire until I was 68, and I didn’t think I was ready then. The opportunity to add 51 graduate hours of credit at several universities while teaching kept me up-to-date with new technology.

What is the most difficult obstacle or challenge you have faced in pursuit of your goals?
The most difficult obstacle I faced was when my husband was in the VA hospital for two years suffering from tuberculosis. I had to drive 750 miles roundtrip every three weeks to see him. After working for 10 years at Exxon, he had become a navy professor teaching diesel engineering when it came on him. He recovered, and then I got him a job at Lee College teaching mathematics and science.