Back in the Classroom

I remember my first day in the classroom. It was nearly 13 years ago that I stood in front my students for the first time to teach them English and Physical Education in a large suburban high school in Nebraska. I remember the day vividly because in one of my classes, I was teaching students who were only 5 years younger than I was. It was a moment that I had been preparing myself for over the course of a 5 year college career. In that moment, I felt like a deer in the headlights, which is why the John Belushi photo above is so appropriate.

It has been awhile since that day and a lot of things have changed for me. I have made the transition from teacher to administrator and I have learned a lot about what good teaching is and what makes students tick. Since my move to administration nearly eight years ago, I have wondered my classroom would look today compared to when I first started. As an administrator, I am really a teacher of teachers, so I don't really get the opportunity to teach students anymore. This semester, however, marks a new beginning for me. I was asked by my local university, and alma mater, to teach an online portal course entitled Leadership for Today and Tomorrow. The focus of the class is to analyze leadership theories and help students figure out how to develop their own leadership potential. The primary text for the class will be Good to Great by Jim Collins and I will also be sprinkling in some of the work done by Nathan Eklund. It is an online course and there are 28 students signed up for the class. It should be a great learning experience and I am excited about the prospects.

As I have stated numerous times before, a teacher needs to be a life long learner and this is yet another opportunity for me to continue on my learning path. I don't have any idea how good I will be at this adjunct professor gig, but I will certainly give it my best college try.