5/2/2023 5:15 a.m.

Today is National Teacher Appreciation Day.

The day falls during the observance of National Teacher Appreciation Week, which is always the first full week of May.

According to the National Education Association the day is for “honoring teachers and recognizing the lasting contributions they make to our lives.”

The day arose when, in 1953, an educator from Helena, Arkansas wrote a letter to then first lady Eleanor Roosevelt expressing the need for a day to highlight and thank teachers in the country.

From there Roosevelt persuaded the 81st congress to proclaim National Teacher Day, but no specific annual observance was set.

After the National Parent Teacher Association enacted Teacher Appreciation Week in 1985, the NEA established the reoccurring date for National Teacher Day to be the first Tuesday of May each year.