Great Teachers

Today in class we read David Sedaris' short story "Me Talk Pretty One Day" about his sadistic French teacher. Then we read a selection from Pat Conroy's "The Lords of Discipline" about what he considers a great teacher. I think he might have considered the French teacher great because she was an adversary and conquerer of her students. In addition, the classroom had "a highly oxygenated atmosphere, aclimate of intemperance, ... and feverish melodrama."
My students than brainstormed about what a great teacher is. One group didn't want me to be all of these things, however.
Here's their lists (I cleaned up the spelling but not the grammar) [My comments in these brackets]:
kind
extra helping the student
fair (no discrimination)
teach/make the class more exciting/not boring
explain everything the student ask clearly
willingness to assist
good speaker and listener
knows how to keep the boundaries
is always fair
not to be racism
keep smart [a reference to Conroy's wanting teachers to make him smart?]
willing to teach [Unfortunately this isn't always the case]
good speakers that can grab your attention
knows how to keep the boundaries between a student and teacher relationship
someone that is not racist
someone that make you challenged
great personality
funny
creative
organized
make good atmosphere
give knowledge to students in an easy understanding way
discipline
responsible in their works
helpful
available for students when they need help
challenge the students
patient
make student active in the class
giving more homework [this one is crossed out]
to have a large knowledge of the subject
find a good way to make a student understand the topic
being understable [understandable?]
bringing a dynamic environment
encourage student to do better (speak to them)
making students feel comfortable
well-prepared
care
understand
make students smart
confident
active
friendly

Wow! I don't know if I can be all these things. For me, a great teacher definitely challenges me. But, I also think a great teacher is one that remembers her humanity and maintains it. What do you think?