Photo Caption: Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC, takes questions from Catholic school principals at their recent retreat at Nazareth House. Among their questions: “Who was your favorite teacher?”

Everyone has a favorite teacher or two. These special women and men inspired us by how they taught, making our favorite subjects (and even those we didn’t particularly care for) come alive in new and challenging ways.

When he met with the principals of Catholic schools in central Illinois during their recent retreat (see story here), Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC, said his favorite teacher was Bernard P. Norling, who taught history at the University of Notre Dame for many years.

As a history major, Bishop Jenky had him for four years, “from the fall of the Roman Empire up through the Cold War.”

Known for his high expectations, Professor Norling even made it a point to check the footnotes on term papers, Bishop Jenky recalled.

“He was a very tough teacher, a wonderful teacher,” the bishop said. “I loved history before I came to Notre Dame and he certainly increased it. He had an encyclopedic knowledge.”

He said Professor Norling was not a dynamic speaker and acknowledged that others might have been better orators, “but he knew so much.”

As this new school year begins, who are some of the teachers you recall fondly and what made them so special? Let us know on our Facebook page or email us at cathpost@cdop.org with “Favorite Teacher” in the subject line.