This month, we are happy to announce a very special Teacher of the Month: our Young Author’s Book Project partner teacher, Mr. Eric Chow. Earlier this spring, we partnered with Mr. Chow’s twelfth grade English classes at Burton High School for the YABP. For five weeks, tutors worked one-on-one with students as they wrote essays, personal narratives, and short stories in response to Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel, Frankenstein. We encourage you to visit one of our stores to see the results of these classes’ hard work and thoughtfulness yourself.
Mr. Chow has been an educator for the last 20 years and is admired greatly by his students. Be it providing 826 tutors to help his students create compelling narratives or bringing in additional speakers to motivate and provide support for college applications, students’ needs are always the highest priority. For many of them, the opportunity to see the breadth of options available and get personalized advice is life changing. Mr. Chow’s commitment to his students doesn’t go unrecognized by the larger school community, either. As Burton HS Principal, Mr. Sam Bass said, “Mr. Chow has always put his students’ needs first and is always looking to improve their experience in any way he can.”
Dedication is at the heart of his work. According to a former student: “one time he spoke about why he became an English teacher. He could’ve done anything but he’s really passionate about teaching and I’ll never forget hearing him talk about that.” It is that passion that inspires his students to take advantage of the opportunities he presents to them. It is that passion that drives him to check in with former students to see how they’re doing after they leave his classroom. Mr. Chow is a source of support for many students, offering his expertise and time wherever it is needed.
We are ecstatic to be presenting Mr. Chow as our May Teacher of the Month. It has been an honor to see his wonderful teaching strategies in action. From all of us at 826 Valencia, Mr. Chow, thank you for encouraging your students to go above and beyond.
Read more about our Teacher of the Month program, and how to nominate a special teacher in your life!