New teachers come with experience

August 31, 2009 • written by April Matthews  
Filed under News, Uncategorized

Mac Hawkins—Principal
The new principal, Mac Hawkins is a Bartlett graduate and excited about being back “home” at Bartlett. Hawkins recently served as an assistant principal at Bolton High School, but now he is back where he belongs. Since the very first day of school, Hawkins has been interacting with the students, which is what he had planned to do.

Hawkins loves horses and he previously owned some. In addition to horses, Hawkins also loves being outside and he does some hiking every now and then.

If anyone does not know Principal Hawkins by now, it is only a matter of time before he introduces himself.

Julia Goodwin—AP English 12 and English 11
Julia Goodwin hails from Cordova High School, where she taught for twelve years. Goodwin has a good impression of Bartlett so far, especially of the students. She says she is impressed by the courtesy and respectful attitudes of the students here.
Before teaching, Goodwin attended Delta State University, Middle Berryhill College, and the University of Memphis.

Goodwin said that she knew at an early age that she wanted teach: “I have always loved everything about writing, literature, and school,” said Goodwin.

Her teaching skills have qualified her as a finalist for the Tennessee Teacher of the Year Award, which is a program to recognize, respect, and appreciate teachers. Sponsored by the Tennessee Department of Education and the Niswonger Foundation, the program requires that applicants teach full-time and have at least five years of experience in Tennessee public schools. The award winner will be announced in October.

Dutchy Nabakowski—English 9 and 10
Also serving as the freshman class co-sponsor, Nabakowski taught at Elmore Park for ten years before coming to Bartlett.

Nabakowski is adjusting well to the move from a middle school to a high school.

“We get out earlier and the students are older; I enjoy working with older kids,” Nabakowski said.

Before she started teaching, Nabakowski attended Illinois State University and then went on to the University of Memphis, where she received her master’s degree. She enjoys that some of the students she is teaching at Bartlett are the same students she taught at Elmore Park.

In her free time Nabakowski likes to read, spend time with her grandchildren, and attend church when she can.

Michelle Hrabak—English 11 and Applied Communications
Michelle Hrabak was a substitute teacher in Arizona for seven years and has been a certified teacher for five years. Last year, Hrabak worked at Bartlett for half a year and just fell in love with the students and staff; that is when she decided Bartlett was the place for her.

“I absolutely love the kids here, I really sincerely do; they are not a bunch of rich kids that are stuck up. They are very down to earth and I just really click with them,” Hrabak said.

Hrabak’s goal for her students, particularly her seniors, is to pass her class and graduate.

“ If they are sleeping in my class I give them a really hard time,” Hrabak said.

Hrabak’s big heart is what sees her through everything such as the classroom and personal times. In her free time, which is rare, Hrabak loves to read and paint.

In addition to being a teacher Hrabak has had several jobs in her lifetime, including disc jockey, radio station manager, and fragrance model.

“ I have done a lot of weird things,” Hrabak said. “I am also an army brat, I lived in Hawaii and Italy.”

Sherri Grear—Algebra 1 and Geometry
Sherri Grear decided to come to Bartlett because she lives in the community and her children are Bartlett graduates.

Grear received a mathematics degree from the University of Memphis, and before coming to Bartlett she taught at Germantown High School and at St. Benedict at Auburndale. She loved the talented students in those schools, and she has found our students to be no different.

Jessica Tupper—Career Management Success, Business Principles/Business Management, Marketing 1, and Sports Entertainment
Jessica Tupper taught at Collierville High School before teaching here at Bartlett. After making a few adjustments, she has become accustomed to her new environment.

Tupper attended Mississippi State University, where she majored in international business. Tupper also received degrees in marketing and Spanish.

In her free time, Tupper loves to bake, watch college football, and spend time with her one-year-old son.

Vicki McDaniel—Financial Secretary
Vicki McDaniel said she is overwhelmed with the massive workload, a change from her much lighter workload at Shadowlawn Middle School, where she previously worked for eighteen years. Even with her busy schedule, McDaniel enjoys her new job.

McDaniel decided to come to Bartlett because she needed a change in environment, and she is happy with her choice. She said the faculty, including her son Coach Mitch McDaniel, has welcomed her aboard, and the students whom she has come in contact with have been nice and polite.

Mitch McDaniel—ISS Adviser
Mitch McDaniel is now the In-School-Suspension adviser. In addition, McDaniel serves as the head coach of the freshman football team and the boys’ track team this year.

Previously a coach for the varsity football team, McDaniel comes from a family of huge football fans who show their spirit by attending numerous football games or watching them on television.

Lynn Murphy—Art 1,2,3,4
After teaching at Shadowlawn Middle School for seven years, Lynn Murphy has decided to come to Bartlett.

Before teaching, Murphy attended Mercer University in Macon, GA.

She enjoys Bartlett and is excited about working here: “I have a lot of talented students and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to work with them,” Murphy said.

According to students, Murphy is a great addition to the art program. She really cares about their future and she makes sure that all of the projects that she has planned for them touch on all mediums of art.

Landon Pilant—Carpentry and Construction Core
In addition to his teaching duties, Landon Pilant, the son of guidance counselor Brenda Pilant, serves as the assistant coach for the boys’ soccer team. He also sponsors Skills USA, which is a partnership consisting of students, teachers, and industry representatives who work together to ensure America has a skilled work force. This nonprofit organization is designed to help students excel.

Ashley Brehm—Life Skills
Ashley Brehm is very excited about teaching at Bartlett for many reasons such as: she is not only a Bartlett graduate, but she also student-taught and substitute-taught here while working on her degree at the University of Memphis.

For these reasons Bartlett is like a second home to her.

In her free time she enjoys taking care of animals. In fact, Brehm has four dogs, one cat, six tree frogs, and a gecko living in her home.

Her goal for this year is to see every child be successful and to continue finding joy in teaching others.

Arwen Adair—Life Skills
Arwen Adair attended the University of Memphis for her undergraduate and graduate year. She majored in both social work and special education.

According to her students, Arwen Adair fits perfectly into the Special Education Program.

Although this is her first year being a teacher, she did teach in the Memphis City School District for three months last year.

However, after she met Vice-Principal Jane Gatewood and Principal Mac Hawkins she knew that this was her home.

In her free time she enjoys camping, and she is the sponsor of The Girl Scouts.

Polly Harris—Early Childhood
Polly Harris has been teaching for ten years, and before teaching at Bartlett, she taught at the University of Tennessee, where she taught Nutrition and Food Safety. She decided to come to Bartlett because she has lived here for about 26 years and considers it home.

She is a proud mother of two girls, and although she rarely ever has any free time, she still finds a way to stay involved in their lives and extracurricular activities. In her free time she loves to read and cook, particularly baking. She is also a fan of the Food Network channel on television: ”If I had unlimited resources I would probably own my own bakery,” said Harris.
Although her move from the University of Tennessee to Bartlett was a huge one, she is very excited about teaching here. Right now her goals are just to make it through the school year, and she hopes it is a successful year for her and her students.

Jason Jarvis—Carpentry and Construction Core
Jason Jarvis enjoys fishing, spending time with his kids and wife, and playing basketball. Having young children, Jarvis stays busy and he finds pleasure in teaching his six-year-old son basketball and baseball techniques on the weekends.

He loves to teach others, and he feels that he has a lot of knowledge that he will be able to pass on to students during his stay at Bartlett.

Angelica Hayes—Health Science
Angelica Hayes is excited about teaching at Bartlett because it is very close to home. To be exact, it takes her five minutes to get back and forth to work, which is usually not the case with most jobs.

Her normal day consists of teaching, spending time with her husband and children, and attending classes in hopes of obtaining her master’s degree in Health Science. Although she is very busy, she is very happy to be teaching here at Bartlett.

“I was so excited when I saw the job opening for this school,” said Hayes. “One of my main focuses right now is getting Health Occupational Students of America (HOSA) off the ground and to become more familiar with my resources as a teacher and begin using them to the best of my ability.”

Leonard Rovery—Criminal Justice
Leonard Rovery is Bartlett’s new criminal justice teacher. He works as an interim teacher, which means that he teaches two hours at Bartlett and two hours at Bolton everyday.

Rovery was a former Deputy Sheriff for Shelby County; however, he now finds pleasure in passing on what he has learned in the work force to younger generations. This is his very first year teaching, and he is thrilled.