As my time at Dominion comes to an end, I find myself reflecting on the ups and downs. My experiences and friends have greatly affected the person I am, but there are also a few adults who have made a lasting impact on me. One teacher that sticks out to me is Mr. Schwartz. Often referring to himself as an acquired taste, he is one of the most sarcastic and opinionated people I know, which I find incredibly refreshing.
I am currently taking my fifth and sixth journalism classes, all taught by him. Each class, he tells dozens of jokes, making us laugh at a few of them. When we do laugh with him, he makes sure to celebrate each smile. During most classes, he goes on rants about little things that have bothered him, whether it is student’s habits or what is going on in the world today. Although he does have a lot of pet peeves, he doesn’t single out students about anything more significant than drinking energy drinks at 10 am.
Not only is Schwartz full of jokes and ideas, he also has a great passion for journalism. He constantly emphasizes how important integrity is and gives us regular lessons on media literacy. Schwartz’s clear excitement for journalism makes the subject easy to love and has even made me consider it to be a potential future career.
Although he thrives on sarcasm, he also knows when we need validation and encouragement. Schwartz never holds out on giving us props when we earn it. Last year, I was on a field trip when I decided to write a feature on it. I took pictures, interviewed people, and wrote it up when I got back. When I gave it to Schwartz for edits, he wouldn’t let me leave the classroom without telling me how awesome I was and how great it was about three times.
Over the last few years, I have gone through multiple periods where I have had personal issues occupying all my thoughts and I felt incapable of accomplishing anything. In those times when I completely lost interest in everything, Schwartz never made me feel like I was a bad student. In both of his classes, he has emphasized that nothing matters more than our mental health and has stood by this for as long as I’ve known him.
Schwartz has always been so quick to notice when I’m not feeling my best and insists that I can always talk to him. Even though I don’t take him up on it, it still means a lot to know I have the option. Earlier this year, I had my head down throughout class because I was having a rough week. I didn’t think anyone noticed but when I was leaving class Schwartz told me he hoped my week would get better. Those six words were huge for me because they showed me that he noticed and cared.
When other people have mentioned how Schwartz is one of the only teachers who cares, he jokes that people need to stop spreading “nasty rumors” but he has never made me feel uncared for so I suppose all the rumors are true.
