By Caroline Ponticelli

Mr. Houseman is not just an ordinary teacher. His dedication to teaching and passion for his students makes him an exceptional educator. This is Mr. Houseman’s first year at the high school, but he taught for many years at Wheatland Middle School prior to coming to McCaskey. 

Before he got into teaching, he covered crime and politics in broadcast television. It gave him amazing opportunities and a wealth of knowledge, but he couldn’t help but feel disturbed with the situations and tasks his career had him face. But this is also part of what inspired him to be a teacher. “No one had a solution for what was happening, and more importantly, no one seemed to care to find one. So I decided to become a part of said solution,” Houseman told me.

Houseman teaches civics and government and media studies for the WMCC morning show. The atmosphere he creates in class is contagious, and brings a mix of fun and learning into the room. I asked him how he creates such an inclusive and engaging classroom environment.

“I’m not sure how I have created that classroom, to be honest. I give a lot of power to my students and with that, they determine how inclusive and engaging my classroom is. I’ve said it many times, the smartest person in my classroom is always everyone in the classroom together. If I have any responsibility for the inclusiveness and high level of engagement, it would be because I pride myself on listening to my students… and not just when they’re talking about class content either.” 

Almost every one of his students I asked about had only positive things to say. Hector Martinez, a senior at McCaskey who has Mr. Houseman for TV pre/post production and morning show said: “Mr. Houseman is just a great guy. He loves to communicate and understand his students and tries to get the feeling that when you’re overwhelmed and stressed out, he understands. He talks to you person to person to help you understand that you have potential.” 

Mr. Houseman brings a refreshing amount passion to teaching civics and government. Here’s what he told me when I asked him about his love for the subject: “It’s fun, being able to discuss the rights my students have, and don’t have, as they figure out how they fit into modern day America. Most of all, I like listening to their opinions and encouraging them to develop those opinions further in hopes of them becoming engaged members of the United States.”

To wrap up our interview, I asked Mr. Houseman to tell me a little about why he loves McCaskey. Here’s what he had to say: “I love this place! The students are amazingly authentic, raw, and possess an incredible amount of resolve. Not a day goes by without me being completely awestruck at one of them. There is no other place I’d rather be. This community is my home.”