Nicholas McDowell jumped at the chance to become a full time teacher when he heard there was a position for a 10th grade English teacher available.
McDowell was looking for a new teaching position, but what made him ultimately choose to work for Prince George was the connection between the county and his family.
“My mom, my aunt, and uncle all went to high school here and my aunt and her husband teach elementary here, so I do have good associations here,” McDowell said.
McDowell comes from a family of teachers, so not only did his family influence him to teach, but they also inspired him to become a teacher in the first place.
“I do love reading old books… and one of my uncles, who is a teacher, came over one summer and said, ‘Why don’t you teach, then you can talk about all the old books you want,’” McDowell said.
While his family connections helped him develop his journey to be a teacher, his love for literature had become a part of it too. To begin his career, he started out as a part time teacher.
“I taught for a semester at Richard Bland College and as a long term substitute in Hopewell High School,” McDowell said. “But I felt like I would be a better teacher if I could do more than that and have a little more time to build better connections with students.
Although this year will not be McDowell’s first time teaching students, it will be his first experience being a full time teacher. This will give him the opportunity to cultivate a stronger bond with students and potentially have a greater impact on their lives.
“My favorite is when a student goes from calling a class ‘boring’ to realizing they’re having fun with whatever they’re learning about,” McDowell said. “My goal is to make school interesting for someone. Even if it’s just one person.”
