Horace High Welcomes New English Teacher and Football Coach

Horace High has welcomed many new teachers this year, one of them being Scott Schmidt, the new English II teacher, and football coach. Mr. Schmidt attended Dickinson State University for five years and used to teach at Davies High School before coming here, to Horace. He states that he has had an interest in becoming a teacher since he was a sophomore, as his father was also a teacher. After taking a 12 year break from coaching, he will now be an assistant coach to the varsity football team and the new head coach for the freshman team. Even though he has been teaching for 27 years, his passion for the job remains and is only getting stronger as he joins a new school. Already, our school has made a positive impression on him as he claims he “loves the school, students, attitude, and environment.”

When asked about his teaching method, Mr. Schmidt described his style as ‘somewhat old school’. He uses a Socratic seminar technique to engage his students in their material and encourage group discussions. He says he does not like to give out packets or a great deal of homework as he would like to make sure the students are engaged with the material at hand. Mr. Schmidt believes in building personal relationships with his students so they feel comfortable and are more susceptible to learning. This seems to be an effective method as several students have already said they feel relaxed around him and genuinely enjoy his class.

If you are ever at a pep rally, keep an eye out for Mr. Schmidt, as he plans on being very involved in school events. As stated previously, Mr. Schmidt values human connection and feels that a good school environment may be able to help teens develop stronger personal relationships with each other. His goal is to boost school spirit and make Horace High a fun and safe place that everyone will enjoy. He has even said, ” I want to be the school clown. I want to be the rah-rah guy that helps boost morale.” It is abundantly clear that he cares very much about his students and co-workers. He even shared some advice for his students,” Have fun and enjoy yourself. Take your education seriously but still come to school willing to learn and willing to have fun.” We can not wait to see what impact Mr. Schmidt will have on our school!