“As a former Division I wrestler, I find myself enjoying challenges. Teaching middle school can be very challenging. Whenever I am asked what I do, you can imagine the look on that person’s face when I tell them I teach sixth-grade math. I let them know my job is flat out fun. I get to work with students who are going through one of the biggest changes in their lives. The transition is tough to go from elementary to middle school and I get to be on the front line. My responsibility is to educate, challenge, and make school a great environment for them. I enjoy this challenge and strive to do things better each day, each year.

And, have you ever had a conversation with a middle school student? They are smart, unique, adjusting to big changes in their worlds, hilarious and sometimes just plain awesome.”

“Well, my educational journey is much different than for most students. I am a first-generation American. My main goal in the school system is to make my parents proud and prove to them that their sacrifice to coming to America was worth it. To accomplish this, I became SCA president and involved with my community. My main focus is to serve others and put my best foot forward.”

“I made it for my grandfather. He got me the bracelet in the drawing and those are his dog tags. It’s just to resemble that he made it through and he has the dog tags. Those are my hands. It took me almost a month to draw it because I had lay the dog tags out on my hands while trying to draw with this hand. I was just going to put a random name or design, and my mom said, ‘Well, your grandpa was in the Navy.’ So, it says Ray Melvin Roundtree. The names go from bottom to top.”

“I’m passionate about playing the violin. I’ve been playing for about 12 years now and play in many orchestra and chamber groups. I really love the way it brings people together and the way it makes me feel when I’m playing.”

“I’m the oldest of 14 children, the father of six and the uncle of 40. I’m a grandfather and my other family is the Marine Corps. Seen a little combat, but my passion is my family. Worked hard, raised my children; got four of them through college. Got my father and sisters taken care of and now working with the grandkids. That’s why I work at an elementary school because I like children, too.”

“The best part of my normal routine is having great opportunities to come to places like the ATC. It’s a great program. I’m very thankful and blessed to have that opportunity and then to go right across the street to the technology academy over at Landstown. I’m very thankful about that. I want to go into the cyber security field.”

“I’m going to go to this dance workshop in Las Vegas. It’s like five days. You just get to go and meet all these people who have done things. You get to have a lot of fun. I’m going to be going with my mom so that’ll be cool.”

“I really enjoy playing soccer and listening to music because it keeps my mind off everything else that’s going on in the world – stressful things, like school. (Music) keeps me focused. I use it to help me with schoolwork too.

(1 of 2) “Look, I’m 82. My grandchildren are in Louisiana, Pittsburgh and Charlotte. And so, I got all this time. Nancye Flynn asked me about volunteering here with reading. I said, ‘I can do that.’ I’m new at it. I really like it. I work with second-graders and fourth-graders, and they are adorable.”

(2 of 2) “I’m an artist. I paint everything on rocks. I give it to them for doing a good job. I’m the ladybug lady.”

“I’m into weather stuff. I like learning about it and how it forms. Like a hurricane, it forms over the ocean. A tornado is formed by thunderstorms – heavy thunderstorms, bad thunderstorms. And tsunamis, well, what it is is an earthquake under the ocean makes waves, just enormous waves, and makes them crash onto land and makes a flood.”

“I want to be a vet. Because I like animals. I like rabbits, dogs, all types of stuff. Because some are big, and some are small, and some are cute and some are that really cute. But I really like animals.”

What’s your favorite part of middle school?

Lockers.

Lockers? Why?

I don’t know – more space.

“I think it’s important because it provides a good example to the other students, it models good parent-child relationships, it shows that it’s good to be involved. I just notice all the kids in the class are always excited when they see a parent here whether it’s me here with Watch D.O.G.S. or when I notice other volunteers. There are many reasons why volunteering is excellent, and just one of them is modeling good relationships.”

(1 of 2) “We should have your blue beads in the middle because ours are both silver.”

(2 of 2) “That’s better.” 🙂

“You’re unlucky and lucky. You’re unlucky because you just missed some great piano playing. You’re lucky because my hula hoop act is coming up. Two years ago I used to be terrible at the hula hoop and now I’m much better.”

“I found out what I’m passionate about and I did it by eating pizza. The thing is I’m passionate about a lot of things, but what I’m most passionate about, you know, being Italian and all in my blood (that’s more like Dracula, but anyway – I’m passionate about food. I love to cook. I love to eat it, oh, I love to eat it. I’ll eat anything, well, I wont eat anything…I really love food. I’m passionate about it.”

“I want to be a doctor so I can take care of people when they get sick.”

“Wait, so, how do you spell ‘doctor?’”

“I want to be a veterinarian because I like my dog.”

You don’t want to be a doctor like your parents?

“No! I don’t want to see the blood.”

“I really enjoy including people in things because, from experience, I‘ve always been put out of things, I don’t know how to explain it. People, like, would leave me out maybe because I’m different and I’m taller and stuff. I don’t know. It just felt like I wouldn’t fit in. I always wanted to include people in things and make them feel wanted.”

“I guess I am passionate about just being happy and making others happy around me or cheering their mood up.”

What’s the craziest thing you’ve done to make someone laugh?

“It was a birthday party and like she was sitting there and I put icing all over my face and I rubbed it on hers and, yeah, I messed up all her makeup and stuff.”

“Before, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. Now, I know exactly what I want to do, and I’m ready for life after high school. I was planning on enlisting in the military, but Cmdr. Brown has mentored me, telling me that I have officer potential with my knowledge and skills. The instructors really do care about you. They’re not here just to make you do what they want you to do. They actually guide you on the right path and I’m really grateful to them for that. They put me on the right path.”

“Reading gives me perspective on being in other people’s shoes, and it helps me think a little more.”