by Jennie Burroughs

Professor Joseph Wood was elected teacher of the year by the WV Counsel of Teachers Association (WVCTM). Wood has been working at Glenville State College as a professor for nine years and said that his job consisted of teaching 12 hours of classes. Wood also does observations and training for new teachers. He mentioned his favorite part about working at Glenville State College is getting to know the students on a more personal level and to aid them in becoming good teachers. Wood also added that he feels a great sense of joy when he sees his students grow and succeed.

To receive the teacher of the year award, a person must be nominated by their peers and then selected by the executive committee of WVCTM. Wood said that part of the reason he received the award was because of the diligent amount of time he put into writing grants for people going into the education field.

He explained his passion for teaching started when he was a senior in high school. Wood said he had never thought about becoming a teacher until he became an assistant for his math teacher. Wood said that he saw how his senior math teacher impacted people by teaching and wanted to do the same. He said that the best advice he can give to education majors, is to have an open mind about the many methods of teaching. He said that often times people have a set mind about the way they want to teach and refuse to look at other methods. Refusing to have an open mind about the methods of teaching can cause unneeded stress because of failed expectations of the teaching style. Wood said that having an open mind about teaching methods allows the person to learn and grow more. Wood added that he felt very honored to receive the WVCTM award, especially because he has only worked at Glenville for a short period of time.

Nevertheless, it is obvious that Wood earned his award. He has worked very diligently in helping students to reach their goals at Glenville State College.