Education/Work:
I graduated from Gardner-Webb University in 2007 with a B.A. in Social Sciences.
I have been blessed to be a part of three great high schools so far in my teaching career.
- Chase High School, in Forest City, NC where I did my student teaching.
- Chesnee High School in Chesnee, SC where I taught for 3 years.
- Poly High School in Riverside, CA where I am currently teaching.
I love sports, especially high school and college sports. I am a huge Clemson and Gardner-Webb fan. I'm also a fan of the Atlanta Braves and Carolina Panthers. I love learning, and especially in my subjects, feel like there is always more to learn. Politics and how the government operates fascinates me. I also have a passion for leadership, more specifically learning how to apply leadership principles in an educational setting. I would love to one day develop a curriculum for a high school leadership course, or to work with new teachers on how to apply leadership principles.
Favorite Bible Verse:
Matthew 7:13-14
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."
Favorite Quote:
Haim Ganott when speaking on a teacher's influence:
Concerning a teacher's influence
" I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It's my personal approach that creates the climate. It's my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child's life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated, and a child humanized or dehuminized."
Favorite Books:
Under the Overpass, Velvet Elvis, Old Man and the Sea, Great Gatsby, Lord of the Flies, and too many others to list.... I love to read when I get a chance.
Favorite TV Shows:
Sports of any kind, Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, Criminal Minds, The Defenders, Hawaii-50, Glee, Raising Hope, Grey's Anatomy, The Sing Off
Favorite Movies:
Shawshank Redemption, Remember the Titans, Rudy, Tommy Boy, Crash, Avatar, Marley and Me, The Lion King
Random Info:
1.) I have collected college logo golf balls for a while now, even though I have never played a round of golf in my life. I've got over 150, and they were displayed in our hallway in SC. I'm sure Megan is somewhat glad now we are in an apartment and they are all boxed up.
2.) I absolutely love sports. Period. End of discussion. I can literally watch any "sport" that may come on tv, and can most likely carry on an educated discussion on any sport you would like.
3.) I am also ultra-competitive. Whether it be in a sport, board game, or whatever, if there is a winner and a loser, I will do everything I can to win, and generally cannot stand to lose.
4.) I love reading, but I tend not to read novels. I would much rather read non-fiction types of work from a wide-ranging list of topics: education, history, polical science, religion, and leadership.
5.) There is nothing better than a chilly fall weekend when you can go to a high school or college football game. The sounds of the bands, hard hits, seeing a great play....hard to beat.
6.) I had an extra adult tooth when I was little. It was shaped like a spiral seashell. It would have grown in if my dad wouldn't have hit me in the mouth with a baseball when I was five. (Or I guess if I would have caught it... it was at twilight...and I was 5). The tooth fairy brought me extra money for that one.
7.) I won two geography bee's and never finished worse than 4th from 4th grade to 8th grade. My 7th grade year I came in the top 30 in the state. I've always been fascinated with other places.
8.) I hate going to the same place twice for vacation. There are so many interesting places out there that I have yet to go to that it seems crazy to me to go back somewhere I've already seen. I've had a goal to eventually get to all seven continents.
9.) I once got invited to try out for college jeopardy. In the tryouts were 100 other college students from the southeast. They ask you 50 short answer questions and give you 8 seconds to answer each. The questions ranged from dates in history, to the second tallest mountain, to the latest rap cds. I got 43 out of the 50 right. I didn't make the cut. Nerds...
10.) Most days I love my job...but the main reason I love teaching is because of the kids. High schoolers these days get such a bad rap, but I am constantly amazed by even the "bad kids". I especially love my group of kids that I have gotten to know outside of a classroom setting. I hope I can only teach them half of what they have taught me about life.
11.) I believe that the single most important thing in having a successful high school is developing student leaders. Too many high schools neglect this important resource. One of my life goals is to develop a leadership program for high school students that involves students mentoring other students while they develop programs, activities, and policies to better their own schools.
12.) I miss my high school friends. I wish I would have done a better job of keeping in touch with them through the years.
13.) I once won a radio contest and won tickets to go into the locker room and sit on the bench at a Harlem Globetrotters game. I also hit a free throw to win the half time contest and won an autographed basketball.
14.) When my sister and I were little, we got a puppy for Christmas. A few months later it was taken or ran away and our parents told us "Santa took him back to give to a family who needed him more." A couple of years ago, that story came back up and our parents denied ever telling us that story...
15.) I want to learn how to speak German. I hate that I have never had a conversation with one whole side of my family. I wonder a lot about all the things that I am missing out on.
16.) I want to skydive simply because my grandfather was a paratrooper and I want to have some idea what it was like...minus the people shooting at me of course.
17.) I'm very good at random bits of trivia...especially sports triva.
18.) One day I hope to have two kids (both girls), and then maybe adpot another child from a foreign country. (I'm thinking Asia, but I bet Megan would pick Latin America...I also realize that she says now she wants more than 2 kids)
19.) The word cancer scares me. It has affected many people in my life and is one thing that can affect anyone, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, religion, etc.
20.) I believe teachers should be required to do one thing each year that is considered "professional development" or that makes them more valuable as a teacher. In my first couple of years, I've gotten CPR/AED certified, I've started an AP program, and now am teaching two AP classes. I've been to several workshops and conferences, and still feel like I have a lot to learn about teaching.
21.) My favorite movie of all time is Shawshank Redemption. Although Tommy Boy is a close second...
22.) I tend to be very confident in myself and my abilities. I wouldn't say that I'm arrogant or cocky, but in most situationsn I will believe that I can do a better job than you. That is probably why one of my biggest fears is for others to think I'm a failure.
23.) It really bothers me when people do not vote in elections. I wish more people got involved in the political process. Even if the person you vote for doesn't win, I still think it makes this country better when you vote.
24.) I married my best friend. We argue and don't always agree on everything (mainly the setting of the thermostat), but because of her I still am trying to better myself and look forward to everything that life has in store for us.
25.) I am never satisfied with the status quo. I am a reformer at heart and am always looking for ways to make things better. Whether it be through changes or some new idea, I am constantly looking at ways for improving things.
