Grace Wolter

Dear Mr. Pottorff, 

I went to CSA New Tech my freshman year, which is a lot smaller than East. After I made the switch to East, I was super nervous to go to a big school with new teachers and students, all while having a hard schedule. I ended up having your class first mod and I remember walking in earlier than everyone else to try and get a decent seat (still ended up in the back though). 

After the first couple of weeks, I finally got the hang of my new schedule and got used to all my teachers. Your class was one that I was very nervous about mainly because of the “ACP” that sat in front of its name. I remember thinking that it would probably be hard taking an advanced college class as a sophomore, but it was not nearly as bad as I thought. 

The way you teach allows each and every student to understand the concepts we learn as long they put forth the same amount of effort that you do (which is something that a student should always do, no matter the class). You are understanding to an extent that is fair and you have always given an adequate amount of time to complete assignments as well as answer any questions a student might have. You always try to give us a break from lectures by incorporating fun activities every now and then while also including days to catch up and days to just sit and collaborate with our peers. You are the type of teacher who understands that, as people, certain events can come up in someone’s personal life that is a lot bigger than school. 

It is so easy to tell that you are such an overall kind and caring person through the way you teach. You teach your students with the same level of respect as you would someone your own age and for that, I am truly grateful. Not a lot of adults look to children (or anyone younger than them for that matter) with the same amount of dignity and respect as you do with us. Even if you do not have a personal relationship with every single one of your students (which I imagine is hard with the number of students that you have) you still speak to us like we have known each other for years. 

I am a quiet student in your class. I do not raise my hand and I do not ever talk to you personally; however, I know more about you than any of my other teachers, and, for me, it makes it easier to learn from a teacher who you have a little bit of background information from.

You have been through a lot this school year and I do not mean to bring it up and I apologize; however you are one of the strongest people I know for being able to push through such an intense disease all while teaching the history of our country to your classes. You do not hesitate to share updates about this part of your life with us and even on days you missed, we still always learned something interesting through your lesson plans.

I apologize again for this being so long and I realized that up until now you probably do not know who wrote this. However, even though I am more on the quiet side in your class, I still notice all you do for the school, your family, and your students. So thank you so much for everything and you will always be a teacher that I remember later in life.

Your student, 

Grace Wolter