On Senior Awards Night, English teacher Scott McCloskey received one of three Outstanding Educator awards. This is the second year he has received it, and to his students, it comes as no surprise.

He has spent the last 16.5 years teaching various English classes at MHS. When asked why he believes he won, he humbly said, “I think I’m fresh in senior’s minds. You may have loved your ninth grade English teacher, but that was four years ago.”

I think it has more to do with how he said he views teaching. “It’s apparent that I enjoy what I’m doing. Enthusiasm is catching,” he said.

He also shares the view expressed by American Poet William Butler Yeats, “Education is not filling a bucket, but the lighting of a fire.” He said he is more interested in teaching his students to care about reading and writing, than about their ability to fill in the correct bubbles on Scantron sheets. While testing well is a part of being a student, it is not the most important thing.

Not only is McCloskey a teacher at MHS now, he is also a 1991 alumnus. In high school, he described himself as being quiet and not a big joiner, though he was a member of NHS. Even though he was introverted, as a student at Eastern, he got into theater, like his parents and siblings. Now, at times, he teaches Intro to Theater, Fundamentals of Acting, and Composition at the community college along with his classes here.

Despite most students not accepting that teachers have lives outside of the classroom, McCloskey enjoys spending his time with his wife of 14 years, Heather, and playing with his dog, Blackie. He said he spends a good chunk of his weekend reading for work and for pleasure.

For many MHS graduates, McCloskey’s class was as much of a memory as any other Trojan tradition. His award is a well-deserved pat on the back for a job well done.