Like an apple tree produces apples, I teach.

The best teachers are life-long students. My best teachers were humble and tenacious. Unafraid to be wrong, they questioned everything. They made a point of acknowledging the natural learning curve of their students, regardless of experience or subject matter. Aspiring to this, I am as transparent with my students as possible. I guide them to "question everything," even me. I highlight as much my own questions as answers, encouraging them to do the same, in hopes to demonstrate that the latter cannot exist without the former, and that each holds equal value. I select readings and design assignments that will resonate with my students current lives; to really learn, after all, we first must be interested. Student buy-in is imperative, and there are many, many ways to learn the necessary skills to succeed in our age of innovation. Typically these skills boil down to the four Cs--critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creative problem solving.

The best teaching is relevant, and endures. My students are challenged to learn about themselves and their responsibilities; it is not just the content, but how the student succeeded or struggled, and what they took away, that matters. In brief, this learning-by-doing mimics lifepreparing students to assess and make decisions based on what type of person they want to be, regardless of the their interests or intellect. Like my best teachers before me, I am continually learning alongside my students, so we enter the wide world together, each with better answers and bigger questions.