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Jaime Escalante

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Mathematician

The Resume

    (December 31, 1930-March 30, 2010)
    Born in La Paz, Bolivia
    Mathematician and calculus professor who taught at Garfield High School (1974-1991)
    Famously portrayed by Edward James Olmos in 'Stand and Deliver (1988)'

Why he might be annoying:

    Initially upon moving from Puerto Rico to California, he could not speak English, which was vital for teaching in American schools.
    He also had no valid teaching credentials at the time.
    When Escalante began his tenure at Garfield High, he initially was so disappointed by the student's lack of preparation that he almost thought of going back to his old job.
    The school's accreditation was almost lost because of his refusal to teach classes designed for poor performance students.
    He pointed out several flaws in the biographical film 'Stand and Deliver,' such as the fact that he suffered a gall bladder attack rather than cardiac arrest as depicted in the film.
    Despite helping students succeed, he was eventually released from his job due to the corrupt California public school system.
    At the time of his death, he was reportedly said to be very poor and had difficulty paying for his cancer treatment.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He refused to rank students highest to lowest based on their performance and said that anyone has the potential to succeed.
    In his first AP Calculus class he taught, two students passed the exam.
    That number would exponentially increase in the ensuing years he taught AP Calculus.
    As a result, his class size increased as well.
    For his endeavors in the field of education, he was awarded the Presidential Medal for Excellence in Education by Ronald Reagan in 1988.
    Olmos earned an Oscar nomination in 1989 for his portrayal of the legendary math teacher.
    'Stand and Deliver' was ranked as number 86 on AFI's 100 Most Inspiring Movies.
    In summary, he was an ordinary man who broke the status quo and made a difference.

Credit: Birdienest81


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 17 Votes: 5.88% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 16 Votes: 6.25% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 30 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 45 Votes: 51.11% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 17 Votes: 47.06% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 8 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 11 Votes: 36.36% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 273 Votes: 54.21% Annoying