Mas allá de la pizarra

My wife asked me to watch this movie with her last night and I'm glad she did. This was a very well done movie. All the actors did a great job especially Emily VanCamp as Stacey Bess. The child actors they got for this movie also did a very good job. I became very interested in the children and what their story was. And to probably be expected some were pretty sad. It was interesting to find out what happens to them during the movie. And as in all Hallmark movies there are some moments that tug at your heartstrings! And moments where you get a smile on your face. This was a story that I wasn't aware of so you could learn something from this movie as well as just get some enjoyment from it. A good choice for the family to watch.

7.6 stars.

A young woman in her early twenties becomes a teacher. To her surprise, she is placed in a homeless shelter classroom of sorts. This is a place where homeless people hang out and sleep in their cars and some small trailers on the property of an old train depot. That part isn't totally clear, but it's obvious this is a place where the homeless are trying to improve their lives, but it's a slow process. The parents are trying to find work and their children live with them in this small automobile and trailer camp. There are some social workers assigned to manage the temporary shelter as well. This young woman is assigned to teach grades 1-6 and it's a challenge. The story goes on to show us how she cares so deeply for this community of homeless and they all grow to love her very much and everyone is profoundly blessed.

I was touched, shed tears about 5 times and that's a lot.

I was lucky growing up- I had parents and Grandparents who valued education and were together as 1 family. In 1974 when I started college the furthest thing which I wanted to do was become a teacher, instead I became a volunteer juvenile probation officer while in college, a police officer afterwards and an Army veteran (all after college). God also blessed me with 2 wonderful sons whom I raised by myself because I lost their father in a car accident. I've always pushed education- expecting and demanding the best from their school boards, their teachers, myself, and my sons. Now, some 38 years after graduating the U of South Florida, I'm obtaining my Masters in Education. I've been a parent volunteer since 2006 in their high school, and I've been a substitute teacher since 2009. This movie just drives home what I've seen over the years, what I've fought for for my sons and their classmates, and for their parents. Thank you Mrs. Bess, for giving me the courage and the fortitude to carry on- I nearly gave up on my MA. Thank you for being the type of teacher which you are- you are indeed a rare breed of teachers and I wish that there were more like you. We don't give up- we look to reach all our students and their parents. You were there to help me and make me not give up- in 3 weeks I graduate with my MA, then it's off to the state board exams.

Grab kleenex! This movie was wonderful! ALMOST MADE ME CRY because of the joy I felt. It always warms my heart to see others, helping others and giving their all. If you like heartfelt movies, this one is it! Very thankful for their movies to make us feel something and want to do better and give of ourselves! James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 2/14/2021

This movie is about the heart and compassion of newly graduated teacher who had the heart to make a difference in the lives of homeless students and their parents. The beauty of it, is she never treated them any less than anyone else. She treated them with respect, love and compassion. In turn, the students and parents learned to trust, be involved in their children education, learned to read and the students thrived.

The moral of the movie... It only takes one act of kindness and the continuation to show up each day to make a difference. In turn, others will do the same. Any child can learn and be great students, they just need someone to believe in them and show up!

In this fact-based Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, Stacey is 24 years old in 1987 and fresh out of college. She has wanted to be a teacher since she was a little girl. In flashbacks, we see her as a little girl who has to listen to her father yell at her mother, but other than that we don't know the specifics of why her early life was not pleasant. Then at 16 she becomes pregnant and drops out of school. Still, she married the father, Greg, and earned her GED, then graduated from college, all while raising not one but two children.

Stacey is interviewed by the head of human resources for the Salt Lake City schools (Timothy Busfield), who has one opening for her--a school for the homeless. It turns out to be much worse than she imagined: a dump of a warehouse which is also the homeless shelter, with no textbooks or real desks for the students who cover a wide range of ages and abilities, or anything to make it look like a real school. Every time a train passes it's like an earthquake. The substitute teacher she is replacing can't wait to get out of the place. There is a class pet--sort of.

But the kids are no worse than kids in any other inner-city school, and most of the homeless are really nice to Stacey. One exception is Candy, who doesn't understand her kids should be in school so they can improve their status in life. After the first day, though, Stacey has only one incentive to stay at this dump. She doesn't want her own children to see her quit. So she perseveres, finally getting through to the school children and really teaching them instead of just babysitting. But the real challenge is dealing with the bureaucracy--she has no actual principal, and no one wants to take responsibility for anything.

Eventually, Stacey gets Dr. Warren to listen, and things improve. Some of the homeless people assist Stacey in her efforts, and one is so good at his job he can be paid for it. Still, other challenges are ahead in this environment.

There is an additional complication in Stacey's life that has nothing to do with her job, but it's just a challenge that adds to the others. She won't give up.

This was a really good movie, though one possible criticism is the fact that these kids were too ideal. And Stacey's own children are too perfect to be believed. But the movie is based on fact, and maybe this is the way it was.

Another omission: at the end the real Stacey Bess was introduced, and she mentioned prayer. Not once was a specific religious faith brought up in this movie. Was this an effort to be "politically correct" and not single out one faith over others?

Emily VanCamp does a very good job. She looks so much like Melissa Gilbert that she seemed familiar, even though I don't really know her. The real Stacey Bess looked very much like Kiersten Warren, an actress playing one of the homeless parents. Still, Warren is much older than Stacey is supposed to be here, and she was well suited for a tough, more street-smart character.

All the leading actors were very good. I would single out Paola Nicole Andino as Maria, a sixth-grader intending to be a teacher but dealing with challenges. Also Liam McKanna as Danny, who goes from Stacey's worst discipline problem (but hardly anything to write home about) to one of the class leaders and a child with lots of potential.

It was worthy of the name Hallmark Hall of Fame.