Entire school lines up to give teacher emotional farewell as she leaves class after 50 years at school

Teachers are an integral part of our lives. They shape us into better individuals and are always there to help us get through difficult times while growing up. They make an impact on so many lives that any amount of appreciation is inadequate for their efforts. Some teachers spend their entire lives in the service of their students. Dr. Sheridan Steelman is one such teacher who spent 50 years of her life teaching at a high school. The students there tried to do their best to bid her a beautiful farewell. 

Her daughter Katherine (@katherineinmanhattan), who is a TikTok user, caught the moment on camera of Steelman's students surprising her on her last working day at the high school. In the first frame of the video, Steelman can be seen walking down the stairs to a place where everyone from the school is present for her farewell. Steelman is shocked to see the entire school lined up to bid her farewell. The text inlay reads, "My mom has taught at this high school for 50 years." 

Her students can be seen applauding and cheering her as she walks out of her class for the last time. With tears in her eyes, she moves forward among the applause and the text inlay reveals that she was only 22 years old when she started working at that school as an English teacher. In the next frame, she can be seen embracing somebody while the text in the video says, "The entire school sent her off as she left the building one last time."

She can be seen shedding tears of happiness as she walks down among her students and colleagues from the last 50 years. This beautiful video moved people to tears and has more than 1.3 million likes. A TikTok user commented, "50 years times 100 students (minimum) equals so many lives touched. I'm crying in my classroom at lunch watching this." Her daughter mentioned in the comments that besides teaching her mother also raised six children, "earned her Ph.D. at the age of 67, and has her first book being published this year." 

Another TikTok user appreciated her by saying, "It is clear her students and coworkers felt so lucky to have her. She must be so amazing!" A past student of hers also took to the comments to express their gratitude, "I was her student 5 years ago, she is a wonderful woman with so much passion for her work and love for her students. Send my best to your mom :)"

Several others wrote about how teachers are an indispensable part of our lives. One person said, "this has me bawling. Great teachers truly are EVERYTHING! I’m 30 and still talk to my HS English teacher regularly." Another added, "This made me cry. It reminded me of the one teacher that truly changed my life. I wish I could find her and just say thanks!" 

Upon the request of a follower, Katherine also went ahead and posted a picture of her mother when she just started teaching. She wrote in the caption of the video, "we found some old yearbook photos." According to Dr. Steelman's Instagram, she is currently having the best time in retirement. She is traveling and spending time with her loved ones while making beautiful memories.