Mr. Bartz is one of the 31 new instructors at ACP who teaches English and serves as one of our many football coaches. His inspiration to teach came from his English teacher during his junior year of high school. Mr. Bartz’s teacher had unique and fun methods of teaching, which helped him retain more information and learn better than in any other class. He stated, “I was not a fan of English until I had a teacher who used different techniques. He was so passionate about his class, and he loved what he did, which made me love it too as a student. It was inspiring, and I learned more in that year than in any other year.” As Mr. Bartz explained, having a fun and engaging teacher is pivotal for the education of young people. Because his high school teacher was able to amplify his interest in literature, he continued to study it throughout college as well. He added, “When I was in college, I took some courses about the history of literature through a European and American lens and fell in love with it.” 

I also asked Mr. Bartz what he would say if he could speak to his future self, and he affirmed,  “Trust the process. That is the lesson I would give my past and future self. Time heals everything, and there is always a purpose. You have to believe in where the purpose comes from and what the outcome will be.” This is a piece of advice we can all apply to our lives. It is natural to be afraid when you’re going through changes, but as Mr. Bartz said, staying positive and being certain that everything will work out is crucial.

As a new teacher, it can be complicated to know what your favorite part of ACP is, but Mr. Bartz was quick and confident with his answer. When I asked him, he exclaimed, “It’s definitely the students. Being able to see how creative they are, have fun with assignments that they take ownership of, and seeing their excitement is so rewarding. I always strive to give students freedom and be themselves when I plan lessons. It is incredibly satisfying to make my subject exciting for students and see what they learned from it.” 

 I had the opportunity to ask Mr. Bartz why he chose to teach English out of other subjects, to which he replied, “It originally started with coaching because it was a subject that not many coaches taught. It was then about translating how much of a passion I have for looking deeper into things and being able to give kids the freedom of their own thoughts, and English is the greatest avenue for that. English gives creative freedom that allows people to have fun, which makes me enjoy teaching that class.” Mr. Bartz is exceptionally passionate about his profession, and like the rest of our teachers at ACP, his priority is to help students learn in a way that is beneficial to them and their well-being. Thank you, Mr. Bartz, for adding such positive and enthusiastic energy to the halls of ACP. Go Knights! 

Author: María Tapia, Staff Writer