The thought of freshman year terrified me. I didn’t feel ready for high school, and it didn’t help that I started my first hour with Geometry.

I’m not a hands-on student, and though I’m not bad at math, it’s algebra I’m confident with. And I couldn’t have imagined on that first day how simple this class and year would be for me with the help of Mr. Hessler--a dedicated, caring, and exciting teacher.

Mr. Hessler doesn’t only teach geometry, but he also teaches pre-calculus to upperclassmen. And, on top of those two intensive classes, he is the varsity football coach. Only someone like Mr. Hessler could handle all of that, with his determined personality. This is part of what made him such a dedicated teacher.

With all of these responsibilities, I expected him to take awhile to return graded work. But the day after we took our first quiz, I was surprised to see a graded quiz waiting for me on my assigned desk. For someone who cares about their grades, it’s important to know what grade I received so I can have time to correct mistakes.

A constant dilemma (as a dedicated student) is being underappreciated for hard work. But, Mr. Hessler always made sure I (and many others) got the praise needed to keep us going in the right direction.
Something as simple as an email to my mom was encouraging. “I am really pleased with the performance of Erin in my Geometry class,” he wrote in the beginning of the email. “More importantly, I want to tell you how respectful and polite Erin is. I wish I could work with more students like her.” To this day, what flatters me more than his words is the time that he took out of his day to write something that was completely unnecessary–according to his job description. He cares enough to go out of his way and to keep his students trying hard.

In my freshman year, I experienced a few (very) boring teachers. But Mr. Hessler was the opposite. Geometry gave him the opportunity to make the most out of each lesson, and force the content into our brains by making us laugh. One time, he took the students’ ID pictures and put them up on the SMARTboard, manipulating their shapes to demonstrate the concept of mirroring and symmetry. I wasn’t personally a victim, but I remember there were giggles around the classroom that day, and most days were similar. This demonstrated to me the importance of having fun with what you’re learning.

By the time my first semester was over, I felt more than prepared for the next four years of high school, and I credit all of my confidence to Mr. Hessler. He’s a teacher, a coach, a father– but most importantly, a diligent educator.