Walker, 76, earned a teaching certificate in 1953 from BYU, where she also studied political science. She drew laughs when she related a story about how her father frequently asked her, "Now, what is it you're going to do with political science?"

Walker served eight years in the state Legislature and 11 years as lieutenant governor. She became the first woman to serve as Utah's governor in November 2003, when Gov. Michael Leavitt joined the Bush administration. She served out the rest of his term — 14 months — and left office with an 87 percent approval rating.

Walker encouraged young teachers to demand the best work from themselves possible and told them to be strong while they face an educational landscape that is rapidly changing and under fire, referring specifically to news stories earlier this week about the number of Utah schools struggling to achieve state and federal standards.

"The numbers will only increase," she warned, "but don't be discouraged if you're in one of those schools, because that's where you're needed the most."

Walker praised the Alpine School District for its experiment of having some children arrive for class an hour earlier than the rest and others stay an hour later. She expressed hope the idea would provide students with needed help and teachers with higher salaries because of the extra hours, and called for more innovative ideas.

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