Since I am native of Rockmart and an alum of RHS (Class of '81), I consider it an honor to be teaching at my old high school. I have been teaching at RHS for 9 years and have taught a variety of science and mathematics courses.

I am highly qualified to teach in the areas of Science and Mathematics.

Prior to coming to RHS, I taught science and math in Rome, GA for 5 years.  I was also a public safety instructor for over 13 years with the State of Georgia.

I am married, have 3 children, and two grandsons who keep me busy.

As for my philosophy of education, I lean more toward the Constructivist ideas and the works of John Dewey.  The constructivism learning theory argues that people produce knowledge and form meaning based upon their experiences. Through the process of assimilation, a student incorporates new experiences into the old experiences. This causes the individual to develop new outlooks, rethink what were once misunderstandings, and evaluate what is important, ultimately altering their perceptions.  Under this theory, I become more of a facilitator rather than a traditional teacher.  I do not teach "one way" to solve problems.  As any of my students will tell you, I don't care what road they take to get to Walmart as long as they get there.  I do veer away from the Constructivist view when it comes to practicing skills.  I believe that before new information can be acquired, a student must have the necessary background information and skills.  These prerequisite skills are the foundation for later learning.  Without them, only fragmented learning will take place.  Mathematics is one of the few subject areas where students are required to recall information from previous grades to help solve problems.  How can I expect a student to understand the derivation of the equation of an ellipse (which was one of my standards) when he/she cannot remember how to find the distance between two points in a plane?  This is the reason that I conduct many practice sessions in my math classes.

I believe that students need to be challenged and expected to rise to the challenge.  When I was young, it was the Age of Aquarius.  Now, it seems as though we have entered the Age of Entitlement.  I want to break this train of thought.  I want my students to realize that success is something you have to work to get.  It is not something that you can Google.