Brandon Twp.-Pat George was 37-years-old when he found himself at a crossroads in life in 1987.
He had worked in healthcare finance at multiple hospitals since graduating from Michigan State University in 1971 with a bachelor’s degree in finance and accounting.
‘I had done everything I wanted to from a finance standpoint,? said George. ‘I threw my hands to the heavens and said, ‘What do you want to do???
He found the answer in a newspaper help wanted ad seeking a part-time teacher with computer experience in the Brandon School District, no certificate required. George went for the interview expecting it to be for adult education, and instead learned it was to teach high school students.
‘I’ll never forget the interview,? recalls George. ‘The superintendent then was Dr. Richard Wilson. He was a crusty old gentleman, but he knew his stuff. He said, ‘Mr. George, I don’t know about you. You’ve bounced a lot of different places, you haven’t hung your hat, but if you like teaching and like those kids, teaching is the best job in the world. If you don’t like the kids, you’ll know it and they’ll know it, and it will be hell on Earth.?
George got the job and last month, more than 28 years later, he retired from a second career that started out ‘scary,? but soon became ‘a gas.?
When he started in January 1987, George taught one 2-hour vocational block, which at the time he said was all he could have put up with as a duck out of water. His saving grace that year was coaching the junior varsity girls softball.
‘I struggled through the classroom, I had zero classroom control,? he remembers. ‘Finally, the assistant principal told me not to worry, (the teachers) had all been through this and it takes three to five years to get your style down. But I had a gas working with the girls on softball. It was an exciting, exhilarating, scary time for me.?
He credits former Brandon teacher Lynne Schank as being a wonderful mentor. She told him that long after the kids forgot anything he though was important from a content standpoint, they would remember how it felt to be in his classroom.
George would eventually have a lot of fun teaching computer programming and applications as well as repair and maintenance of computers, personal finance, and accounting. Over the years, he would hold positions as business department head (four years), business club adviser (four years) and district vocational director (8 years). He would also find that he had traded a higher salary from his previous career for a teaching career that was much more enriching.
‘Teaching is the most important thing I’ve ever done in my life,? said George. ‘I got so much back from my students. I’ve learned as much from them. When I look at these young people and people say they have no work ethic, I think, ‘they’re teenagers.? I feel very, very comfortable with the young people and having these people supporting us. They’re that good.?
George encouraged his students to interact and help each other in his classroom, arranging their desks to face each other so they could engage. He developed a more easygoing attitude and gave them responsibility for their own learn-ing, going from what he calls ‘a sage on the stage? that had to have all the knowledge and instead becoming ‘a guide on the side,? that was there to help them find their way.
While they were learning, he was continuing to learn, too? getting certifications in vocational education and general education as well as a master’s degree from Michigan State University.
‘I though I was going to be the oldest living non-tenured teacher in Michigan, maybe the midwest and maybe even the country,? said George, who is the husband of Kelli for the past seven years and the father of Adam, a 2007 BHS graduate. ‘The lesson is when you find something you have your heart set on, you just persevere.?
George, 66, notes it was difficult to stay current with technology and juggle all the prep hours. He liked to tell the kids he doesn’t ‘Twitter, tweet, or twerk.? He doesn’t have a Facebook account and he believes social media can be a tremendous time waster.
‘You’re connected easier, and that part is fun and useful,? he said. ‘Some people say today’s kids have difficulty communicating because they can do it in a 144-character text message and can’t speak one-on-one, but I don’t think that. Social media has good and bad, and that’s true for all of us, not just teens.?
To quote the band ‘The Who,? George says, ‘The kids are alright.?
In retirement, he said he considered resolving to stay fit or try new endeavors, but instead, he is making goals he feels are more achievable.
‘I would like to eat a little more ice cream and I would like to watch a little more Netflix,? he said. ‘It’s got to be maintainable and I think I can maintain those.?