Role Model of the Times

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On a small hill in Huaping， Yunnan， there is a small school. However， it has rewritten the fate of so many poor girls by sending them to universities since 2008.

Zhang Guimei is the headmaster of this school. She began teaching in Huaping more than twenty years ago. She wondered why many girls in her class would just one day stop coming to school. After some investigations， Zhang learned that they were from very poor families. These girls were forced to work or get married at a young age. “We often say that we want every child to have a fair start，” she said， “but these poor girls don’t even have a chance to stand on the starting line.”

Zhang wanted to change this. She spent years trying to raise money. Finally in 2008， she set up the Huaping High School for Girls. It’s China’s first and only free public high school for girls.

Zhang gets up at 5 a.m. every day to turn on the lights on each floor of the teaching building. Many girls are timid， the headmaster explains. She wants them to feel safer on their way to classes. After years of tiring work， Zhang is now in poor health，but the school and the children matter more than anything else in her mind.

Zhang’s story has warmed hearts all around China and inspired many to follow in her footsteps. Zhou Yunli was one of her students. After she finished university， she heard that her alma mater was short of math teachers. She immediately returned to the school to teach. “Without Ms Zhang， I would be nobody，” Zhou said with a smile. “When you become strong， you must remember to help others. This is what Ms Zhang has taught us.”

1. Why did Zhou Yunli return to the school to teach math？

2. What can you do after learning the story about Ms Zhang？

你校即将举办主题为“谁是你最崇拜的人”英语演讲比赛，请你写一篇演讲稿并参赛。（剩余1969字）