Each day after lunch, I pack up my backpack, throw away my lunch, grab my binder from my locker and head to math, one of my favorite subjects. Before I head into my classroom, I stop and chat with Mr. Hessler, who taught me in Geometry my freshman year of high school. It’s like I’m revisiting with an old friend each day—he’s a very sociable guy who’s easy to connect with, in and out of the classroom.

I came from a middle school full of average math teachers who struggled to get in depth in their lesson plans and I always found myself with low grades. Math was my least favorite subject and I figured it would be the same throughout my high school years.
But when I headed towards Mr. Hessler’s room during first hour on the very first day of school, dreading the next 40 minutes I would be wasting attempting to learn math, things changed.

Mr. Hessler had a difficult task in front of him: he had to keep 25 high school students awake and interested in schoolwork at 7:20 in the morning. But instantly, I felt a positive vibe radiating in the room, and I found myself laughing. He always used humor to lighten the mood and get the educational ball rolling. He learned the names of each student quickly and found a way to reach out to each student, on one level or another.

Being a football coach for a national ranked team (The Arrowhead Union High School Warhawks), a father to two kids and a teacher to hundreds of students, he had a lot on his plate. But Mr. James Hessler has managed to take his team to state multiple years (the last three years they’ve either been a runner up or State Champion), spend quality time with the family and produce A and B math students, all at the same time.

The man knows what he’s doing. He’s the kind of teacher who answers the question “When will I ever need this?” without even being asked. He shared real life examples and shortcuts that made learning math easier than it had ever been before. Mr. Hessler created projects that made me think, yet allowed me to have a good time while completing them.
If I needed extra help, he always found the time to help. He’s hilarious, energetic, helpful and happy to be doing what he’s doing. He passes on his good vibrations to his students, making math an enjoyable subject.
Next year I will be a senior, and I’m already trying to get Mr. Hessler again. He makes my days easier, my mood lighter and my GPA higher! Thank you, Mr. Hessler for being a better teacher than I ever could have imagined.