EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING
Exceptional Educators I have dedicated my life to education, the promotion of diversity and inclusivity, and providing a learning space in which students are able to relentlessly dream. — MarQuis Chappell B.A., Maryville College, M.A., Belmont University
HEATH JONES PRIZE FOR THE PROMISE OF EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING Dedicated to A. Heath Jones, who worked as a teacher and academic dean at Harpeth Hall from 1984 to 1996, the prize for promise is given to a full-time teacher who has had five years or less of classroom experience and who has taught at Harpeth Hall for two years or more.
MarQuis Chappell, Upper School English Teacher
MarQuis Chappell’s personal and professional standards of excellence have set a new bar at Harpeth Hall. When Mr. Chappell joined our school community, he did so because — in his words — he believed so deeply in our mission. For an early career teacher to know so clearly the value of a school’s mission statement was telling about the kind of teacher and community member he would become. Mr. Chappell’s teaching philosophy is: Speak Less, Listen Often, and Let the Students Teach. Mr. Chappell is beloved by his students, especially for his tradition of greeting each student at the doorway to his classroom. As you will hear from his students, they feel seen, known, cared for, and inspired to reach new intellectual heights in his classroom. While Mr. Chappell is imminently likeable, his likeability stems from his high standards as much as it does from his ability to meet his students right where they are. His classroom teaching is engaging, dynamic, and always multi-layered. “There are many things of which I am uncertain, but my calling to be an educator is not one of them,” Mr. Chappell said. “I undoubtedly know this to be true. With such a grave understanding, I have dedicated my life to education, the promotion of diversity and inclusivity, and providing a learning space in which students are able to relentlessly dream. I firmly believe that English and literature provide students a pathway to discover the sound of their individual voices, and to explore the complexities of the world in which they live. My hope is that by the end of a year in my classroom, my students have learned that their voices have merit and should never be silenced — by oneself or external forces. My hope for each of my students is that my classroom provides them the opportunity to inexhaustibly dream of ways to make their lives extraordinary.”
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My educational philosophy is built on three important aspects of math education: connections, understanding, and reflection. — Amy Mulron B.A., Union University, M.B.A., University of Pennsylvania, M.Ed., Vanderbilt University 14
HALLWAYS
