Written by Jim Drexler.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press ran a front page story on Nov. 15, The roarin' 20, profiling “a group of emerging leaders who already are showing the gumption, community engagement, and work ethic of professionals well beyond them in years.” My wife noticed that of those 20 leaders featured, none are classroom teachers. Zero!
Educators still suffer from the infamous Woody Allen line from Annie Hall, “Those who can’t do, teach. And those who can’t teach, teach gym,” which was a play on George Bernard Shaw’s “He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches.”
But, this negative perception hasn’t always been the case, and many teachers in our area exemplify excellent teaching. Since the Times Free Press didn’t include any teachers in their list of 20-somethings, let me introduce you to two.
[caption id="attachment_6823" align="alignnone" width="424" caption="Jason Brooks, standing, engaging students at the McCallie School."]
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Jason Brooks, 28, Spanish and Chinese Teacher
Jason Brooks was reared in Los Angeles and attended Trinity University in San Antonio where he majored in Spanish, played lacrosse and ran the 800 meters. Now in his fifth year of teaching at the McCallie School, Brooks teaches Spanish and Chinese, coaches football and lacrosse, and serves as a resident faculty member for dorm boys, a position in which he has enormous impact on shaping lives. He is also finishing his master's degree in Chinese Studies at Valparaiso University in December, and hopes soon to earn his Ph.D. in Linguistics.
“Jason is a teacher who truly gets it,” said Kenny Sholl, McCallie Upper School Head: “He is passionate about Chinese, loves his students, and finds ways to engage them actively in his classes. He loves other cultures and makes it a point to help his students better understand the way in which other people live.”
Matt Jelley, 28, English Teacher
Matt Jelley teaches eighth grade English at Dade Middle School in Trenton where he has taught for the past six years. In that time, he has coached, served on the Chamber of Commerce and as an officer in his church, and was named Teacher of the Year both at his school and for Dade County.
Most significantly, Jelley was one of the designers of Project Synergy—an innovative program that links education, business, government and the community through innovative student projects in the real world. In 2008, students made design propels to Volkswagen that were so impressive the president of Volkswagen met with students to discuss their ideas. This year, Dade County Middle school is partnering with TVA on a project related to nuclear energy. Jelley and his co-developer Tom Randolph have been honored by Gov. Sonny Perdue and other political leaders, and have recently been invited to speak at an international consortium for entrepreneurial educators in Norfolk, Va.
“Mr. Jelley inspires his students to reach beyond themselves,” said Karen de Marché, Dade Middle School principal: “He interacts with community members, impressing upon them the importance of networking with the educational program not only at his school, but with all of the schools in the county.”
Do you know other young teachers who deserve recognition for their work in the community? If so, please tell us about them in the comments.
Jim Drexler is the Dean of Social Sciences and Master of Education Program and Chair of the Education Department at Covenant College, where he has served since 2004.
PEFCommunications on Nov. 25, 2009
The Public Education Foundation agrees that teachers deserve much more recognition than they receive! That's why we are currently running a year-long campaign to feature excellent teachers in Hamilton County public schools at www.pefchattanooga.org/excellentteachers. So far we have posted information and videos featuring three excellent teachers - Dustin Dotzler at Hardy Elementary, Elaine Harper at Red Bank High, and Dionne Upton at East Brainerd Elementary. We have 17 more teachers in the pipeline - and these represent only a fraction of the many teachers who deserve recognition. Please check it out at www.pefchattanooga.org/excellentteachers. There's even a place to leave your own comments about an excellent teacher!