Parked outside of Jordan Middle School on California Avenue, a 1968 green Ford Mustang sits in the shade of a tree, protected from the sun. The car, dented here and there with scratches scattered liberally, provides clear evidence of decades of use. The windows are rolled down, and the door is unlocked.

This humble, reliable vehicle belongs to Shirley Zimmerman, former eighth grade English teacher of Jordan Middle School, purveyor of grammar to several thousand Palo Alto youngsters, and one of the literary grand dames of the Palo Alto Unified School District. Zimmerman’s car, according to her friends and colleagues consistently seen parked outside the Jordan campus has come to symbolize her commitment and dedication to her job.

“When somebody says ‘Mrs. Zimmerman’ they associate her with her little green Mustang,” says Robert French, one of Zimmerman’s closest friends, former co-teacher and Palo Alto historian. “It [her Mustang] was often there on Saturdays and Sundays after church. What was she doing? Grading papers. Correcting things. Spending time. No other teacher that I’ve ever known has done that over the years to the degree that she has.”

Last year, Zimmerman officially became the longest-serving teacher in the PAUSD, with a whopping 48 years at the job. Zimmerman retired at the end of the 2011-2012 school year and then returned for a part-time contract last year.

Zimmerman’s influence continues even after her retirement from a full-time teaching position.

“She’s an institution in herself,” says Josh Spira, former student and current teacher at Jordan. “I consider myself very lucky to have been able to be exposed to someone like that, that often and to get closer to her, and to have a little bit of her wisdom rub off on me.”

Former student of Zimmerman and current Palo Alto High School Senior, Vivian Laurence, praises Zimmerman.

“Mrs. Zimmerman was one of the most kind-hearted teachers I’ve ever had,” Laurence says. “She dedicates so much of her time and energy to her students; it’s truly remarkable.”

Zimmerman’s story begins in Jackson, Miss., in the 1930s. Zimmerman was raised as an only child; her mother and father were the most significant influences in her life, she told Verde in a recent interview. Both educators, Zimmerman’s parents provided her with words of wisdom related to the art of teaching.

“My parents gave me a lot of good advice,” Zimmerman says. “They told me to never put a kid in a corner — always allow the kid a way out. You always have respect for the student. It’s okay for the student to enter your space, but don’t enter the space of a teenager.”

Zimmerman entered the world of education teaching 6th grade in a junior college district in Meridian, Miss. She then went overseas and taught in Germany, traveling across Europe, the Middle East and Russia.

“I was there [Russia] when the Berlin Wall was built, and during the time the Iron Curtain came into being,” Zimmerman says. “We were in Czechoslovakia, so it was interesting to be in the middle of things as they happened.”

While in Germany, Zimmerman also took an interest in race car driving.

“I was teaching in Germany and a couple of us went up to watch the track,” Zimmerman says. “I was a speed demon anyway, and they [her fellow teachers] said, ‘Hey! Wanna race some of the guys?’ Well, I did okay! So they invited me to come back on weekends as the pace car — it was nothing serious.”

When Zimmerman came to Palo Alto in 1974 Jim Ernst, Jordan’s principal, recruited her to teach 8th grade after teaching at Garland Elementary School. Zimmerman says that the students are still the same, despite decades of passed time.

“I think kids are still curious,” Zimmerman says. “I think students still want to learn. They want to be good at what they do. I think sometimes they reflect the world around them. I want my students, years from now, to be able to run the country, and be able to solve all those problems that are going on in Washington right now. At some point they are going to become our leaders, and that’s always held true.”

In fact, Zimmerman had specifically asked to teach only 8th grade for the past 48 years, because it was the transitional year.

“I would not choose another grade but 8th, because you have to make sure that they have the basics under their belts, before they go to high school,” Zimmerman says. “I like doing that, and… I like that students have the basic foundations in grammar, writing, vocabulary… before they go off into the big world.”

Unlike many teachers who chose to pursue administrative positions after gaining teaching  experience, Zimmerman vehemently decided not to.

“No way,” Zimmerman says. “I think it takes two different skills, and I want to be with the students. I do know about the business life. I think it’s important for anyone in education to know what’s happening in the real world. In the 80s I ended up at Hewlett Packard and worked as pool secretary in corporate communications. At the end of summer I was offered a full-time job as technical writer, and it was exciting to tell them, ‘No.’”

After 48 years of teaching at Jordan, Zimmerman’s service came to an end in 2011. According to French, Zimmerman’s official retirement ceremony was yet another testament to her hard work and dedication.

“When Dr. Skelly, the [PAUSD] superintendent when she retired, honored her [Zimmerman] at the meeting where he has all the staff [at Gunn], he said, ‘Would everybody stand whoever had Mrs. Zimmerman,’ and people all over stood up,” French says. “That must have been thrilling to her, because she’s very humble.”

In fact, former student of Zimmerman and current Paly parent Todd Laurence, has had all three of his children learn under Zimmerman as a teacher.

“When I attended my daughter’s [Vivian’s] Back to School night, I was amazed,” Laurence says. “Not only did she [Zimmerman] remember me, but she instantly pulled out two essays I had long forgotten from when I was in her class.”

According to Zimmerman, she never ‘decided’ to retire, but that is what ended up happening in the end. In fact, the fun is only just beginning.

“My mantra has always been: ‘I still don’t know what I’m going to do when I grow up,’” Zimmerman says. “I just think there’s something and I’m not sure what it is. I just don’t know what’s next, I just really don’t know. I do want to mush a team of huskies.”

Despite retiring, Zimmerman returned to Jordan in 2012,  because she says it was hard for her to let go:

“I think that people were kind enough to realize that it was hard for me to stop cold turkey and not teach anymore,” Zimmerman says. “After I retired, they offered me the opportunity to come back and teach two classes, which I appreciated…They allowed me to go out more easily.”

Spira had more than a couple words to say about Zimmerman.

“It was wonderful [teaching across the hallway from Mrs. Zimmerman],” Spira says. “I would see her four or five times a day, between periods, standing out in the hallways. I had already known her, but we got to know each other pretty well. She’s a part of the fabric of Jordan Middle School.”