The Washington Post is reporting on the passing of an American hero of sorts.  Jaime Escalante, a Bolivian native, was made famous in the late 80's by the movie "Stand and Deliver".  Escalante was known, in real life, as a determined and inspirational teacher.  His tenacity and dedication to the education of, in particular, minority students is exceptional.  Some teachers dedicate their lives to the profession.  I'm not talking about folks who keep on teaching long after they are useful, but those who sacrifice their time, as Mr. Escalante did, to give their students a hope and a future.  As the article reports, Escalante would often encourage students to spend time after school and on Saturdays studying the material at school.  Escalante knew he faced students whose "gap" in what they knew was great but not insurmountable.  A good teacher recognizes this gap, but a great teacher does something about it.  A great teacher gives his or her students the option to do something about it.  So often we stop short of being great because we feel locked in to a given schedule or, perhaps, are not willing to give what it takes to be great.  No one can accuse Escalante of stopping short, of that I am sure.