In fact, he probably even knows their parents’ names.
When Short noticed his student athletes from South Rabun Elementary School were getting cold during the rainy 2011 Special Olympic games, he went back to the school bus to retrieve all of their jackets.
It is his caring and compassionate nature that makes him a great teacher.
Matt Arthur, Rabun County Schools Superintendent and a close friend of Short, said the school system was suffering a great loss this year as Short retired. “I’m happy for him being able to retire, but I’m sad for Rabun County,” he said.
With his wife, Sharon Short, also retiring this year after 33 years of teaching in Rabun County, and with his first grandchild on the way as I write this story, Short said he was looking forward to spending quality time with family.
"(After 31 years) I don't feel burnt out, but I've reached a time in my life I want to slow down and enjoy a few things while I still have my health," he said.
Short spent his first nine years teaching middle and high school science and a little math before being promoted to assistant principal at Rabun County High School.
Since then, he has taken a number of different administrative positions at Rabun County Middle School, Clayton Elementary School, the board office and finally South Rabun Elementary School.
While Short is thankful for each new position that allowed him to take care of his family, he said he enjoyed being closer to students. "But my best times were always teaching in the classroom," he said.
But teaching was different when he was in the classroom.
"That's before there were a lot of regulations," he said. "But it was an exciting time for science." He said events like the eruption of Mount St. Helens and the HIV/AIDS epidemic gave him more opportunities to make science relevant for students.
"You have to show them there's some future utility in what they're learning," he said.
Short said these days teachers had to be covering a certain chapter at a certain time to keep up with state standards. While new teaching data have been helpful in recent years, he said every student learned differently.
"It's a give and take. I think education is moving toward honorable and achievable goals, but it's also robbing some of the things that make (learning) more interesting," he said.
Arthur said Short was a great asset in the classroom and brought a valued opinion at the board office. "He's very intelligent and looks at things from all angles," Arthur said. "... He's always honest, even if you don't want to hear it."
Short hopes his legacy will be one of fairness. While being the disciplinarian is never an easy task, he said he tried his best to be fair to all parties involved.
"I always wanted to give everybody the opportunity to present their side of an issue," he said. "I think most people would say I was fair, and that's all you can hope for."
Arthur agreed that Short was fair and consistent. "The bottom line with Tomy, he was fair and made sure all kids had the same opportunities no matter where they came from," he said.
Short was born in Rabun County. Actually, he said he was the first baby to be born at Rabun County Memorial Hospital in 1957. His parents, Jack and Eleanor Short, are from Clayton, but the family moved to East Point when Tomy was a young child.
Tomy said he wasn't fond of the city and moved to Marion, N.C., his senior year of high school, which is where he met Sharon. He earned his bachelor's degree in biology from Western Carolina University while Sharon was earning her education degree from Mars Hill College.
Short then went on to get his master's degree in education. He said education was a natural fit for him because his grandmother, both his parents and his wife had already taken that path.
"I knew it would have its rewards," he said. "And good science teachers were not easy to come by then."
Tomy said he always enjoyed living in the mountains. Once he and Sharon settled down here and had children, they wanted to make sure their daughters graduated from Rabun County.
"It's a good school system, and there's no better place to raise your kids," he said.
Visit The Clayton Tribune for the original story.
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