Mr. Blood is one of the up and coming greats of the history department, and he’s bringing his A-Game to show it.
Mr. Blood is a new history teacher at Wyoming High School, typically teaching sophomores US history and APUSH. Although he taught 5 years at another school, this is his second year in our district. He also is an advisor for both TCG club and the GSA club, an important member of our school life despite this only being his second year at WPS. The gentle nature and the relationships he creates with students distinguish him as a person you can talk to about anything, whether it’s about school related matters or advice for outside life. Though he’s still growing as a teacher, it’s not hard to tell that in the future, he will become just the kind of teacher he dreams of being.
Although he has been a teacher for seven years now, he still finds himself struggling with one important facet of education – relationships with students. Being new to a district makes connecting with students exponentially more difficult and Mr. Blood is no exception. “The hardest part about being a new teacher is building relationships, that bond with the students.” Mr. Blood said. “Think about when you’re moving to a new city or a new school, it’s just like that, and it’s pretty tough the first couple of years.”
Mr. Blood is just one side of the story though. Many other members of our school believe Mr. Blood to be extremely adept at talking with students with his kind demeanor and ability to truly listen to students. Mr. Doyle is Mr. Blood’s mentor this year as a veteran of our school and a fellow history teacher, and he has doubts about Mr. Blood’s alleged inability to connect with scholars. “He connects really well with the students in general, not just some, but all students.” Mr. Doyle said. “He’s very inviting, right? And he’s trying to do things that are maybe outside the norm, but it’s really good for the students and I can see that they appreciate that.”
Mr. Doyle is not alone in his trust in Mr. Blood. Students of the history teacher also find that he is someone they can come to for anything. “He’s one of those educators that always makes me feel seen,” Sophomore AP US History student Sofia Barajas Gutierrelas says. “I think personally, he always asks about my day and wonders how I’m doing, it makes me feel welcome.” Although sophomore Lydia Dahlstrom doesn’t have Mr. Blood as a teacher, she always notices his positivity and willingness to talk with students. “I see him in the upstairs hallways sometimes and he always has a smile on his face or he’s talking to a student,” she says. “From the people I know in his class too, he seems like a really nice person and a good teacher.”
Along with teaching, Mr. Blood involves himself with two clubs – GSA and TCG club. His passion for helping students is shown through not just his teaching, but his advisory in these clubs as well. GSA in specific has been a club he has put a lot into to ensure a feeling of home and welcomeness for students in the LGBTQ+ community. “Sometimes students in the club or anyone in the community don’t have a voice, or they don’t know how to articulate what they want,” Mr. Blood says. “ I want to be that voice for the students, I want to be someone who can help and that they can rely on.”
Although teaching has always been a passion for Mr. Blood, he has considered a few other unexpected options, whether it’s teaching another subject, or a completely different career. “There was a second where I wanted to be a police officer,” he confessed. “ I also almost became a science teacher, my minor was in biology, but history has always been number one.”
Mr. Blood’s dedication to helping students and being someone they can lean on distinguishes him as a wonderful new addition to the staff at Wyoming High School.