An average high school student will spend more than 4,000 hours at school in four years. We do not need to ask if our students will be affected by their teachers, because they will. What we need to ask is how they will be affected during this formative phase of their lives. At LuHi, our teachers demonstrate ten exemplary traits that positively impact our students for life.
1) Strong sense of mission
First and most importantly, every teacher at LuHi is a committed Christian who believes their position is not just a job, it is a calling. They interact with students each day with the common goal of using their unique skills and personalities to be positive role models and prepare students for a life of faith and service in the world.
2) Strive for excellence
At LuHi, we are blessed to have academically gifted teachers who help students see and reach their greatest potential. Student Chase Campbell says Ms. Oates exemplifies this trait well. “She expects nothing less than your best work, helping us as students strive for excellence. She doesn’t expect perfection; she expects you to put forward your best thoughts and efforts.
3) Love for our students
Student Lindsey Gross says that teachers at LuHi are unique because of their Christ-like love. Each teacher and staff member gets to know every student. “The whole staff treats each student with the same amount of love and respect, which I have never experienced in any other school. They care so much that I’ve had teachers stop me in the hall to ask me how I’m doing, and ask me about what they can be praying for. That isn’t something you’ll find anywhere else.”
4) Teach from the heart
To teach from the heart, a teacher must believe in their subject and they must believe in their students. High schooler Shea Schmidt has experienced this in his Honors English course. “While all of the staff and teachers here at LuHi are exceptionally supportive and wonderful teachers and leaders, Mrs. Hollenbeck is an incredibly good choice of teacher that embodies a love for her students. Her class brings the book alive and makes the information understandable and interesting.”
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5) Be humble & real
LuHi is a family, so at times there will be both peace and conflict. The starting point for our relationships is remembering we are all sinners–even teachers!–yet Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross covers all of us. When teachers acknowledge this reality to students, it creates an atmosphere of trust, which paves the way for authentic learning and growing.
6) Demonstrate patience
LuHi students come from a wide variety of backgrounds, personalities and learning styles, and our teachers value each of them for being unique children of God. Through consistent communication including surveys, conversations with parents and students, and classroom observations, teachers ensure everyone has full educational advantage.
7) Develop a strong relationship with God
Just as our teachers are always growing in knowledge in their academic field, they are also growing in their faith. Whether it means faithfully worshiping with their own church families, participating in staff bible studies, attending theology conferences, or serving in the community, they do whatever they can to fill up on God’s love themselves so they can pour out God’s love on our students.
8) Seek wisdom and truth by thinking biblically
At LuHi, all our teachers believe and teach that the Bible is infallible and provides absolute truth. Because there are a myriad of sources in today’s society that claim to offer wisdom, answers and healing, our teachers help students turn to God at LuHi so they are supported with a strong, Biblical foundation the rest of their lives.
9) Trust God
Teenagers are old enough to realize that faith is not always easy; young people have questions about what faith looks like when life gets difficult. Our teachers do not ignore these questions. Instead they give students space to talk and lead them to the source of all answers Himself. Our teachers have powerful trust testimonies that come from their own stories with God.
10) Encourage those around us
In addition to parents, teenagers need other adult mentors in their lives to support them and offer sound advice. At LuHi, students can take their pick of any teacher. Chase Campbell says, “As a student it can be hard sometimes to connect with a teacher on a somewhat personal level, but that is different at Lutheran. Teachers are passionate and loving, but they are also so much more. They are humble, encouraging, and most importantly they display a love and passion for God through their teaching.”
Every teacher at LuHi has been carefully chosen for their high levels of expertise, integrity, and dedication to their calling and our students. If you have not yet witnessed a classroom experience at LuHi or talked with our teachers, please consider scheduling a visit. We are so proud of our faculty members who are changing the world one Lion at a time.
