Mr. Herriot

    I remember picking up U.S. History class for my sophomore year social studies credit at Arrowhead High School, still having no clue who any of the teachers were. I realized I had Mr. Herriot for the whole year. In the back of my head, I thought, “Well great, this can either be a good thing if he’s fun or this can be bad if he turns out to be a snob.” 

    Luckily for me, he wasn’t a snob. Mr. Herriot is one of my favorite teachers. After the first week of the year, Mr. Herriot and I had that special connection where we could shoot jokes at each other or talk about sports. He would give me crap about being a New Orleans Saints fan, but it was in a fun-loving way that I knew he was messing with me. This showed me that he took the time to listen and see my personality.

    I think the reason that Mr. Herriot and myself had an enjoyable relationship was because we’re both bubbly and happy people. We had the same interests which made having a conversation between us as easy as one, two, three.

    Mr. Herriot made history fun to learn about and interesting by using sarcasm, enthusiasm, and expression. We did debates from time to time which was something new and enjoyable. Mr. Herriot’s teaching style showed how much he enjoyed teaching and it was telling me to enjoy whatever I was doing.

    Mr. Herriot is also the track coach as well as an amazing photographer, so at the start of each class, he would have one of the photos he took as the background of his agenda slide as well as an Arrowhead sports scores on the slide. It was a neat way to show us what he does outside of teaching and a solid way to add his own flare into his teaching.

    One thing I don’t think I’ve ever said out loud is the reason why I signed up to take Psychology was because Mr. Herriot told us that he also teaches. I had such a blast in his U.S. History class that I wanted him again. I unfortunately didn’t get Mr. Herriot for as my teacher. 

Mr. Herriot and I still talk to this day, even though I don’t have him as a teacher. Yes, he still gives me crap about being a Saints fan when I run into him. When we do talk, it’s not an awkward conversation that most students would have with a teacher outside of a classroom. It’s a playful and fun talk about sports and life. Mr. Herriot recently asked me to join him on the track team as a high jumper this spring.

 Mr. Herriot, thanks for not being a snobby teacher back in U.S. History and guiding me down the right path. Thanks for being a genuine person that I can talk to about anything and thanks for being the educator of the year.