Jeffrey Garrett, TAC, High School History

FACTS: Jeff comes to the TAC program from Saint Paul, Minnesota, and hopes to return to his beloved Twin Cities to begin teaching. He has had a long-standing desire to work in education and previously worked as an undergraduate admissions officer before entering HGSE. His interest in education stems from his own experience growing up and seeing many peers, who lacked the support at home to overcome poor teaching and negative influences, fall through the proverbial cracks. Jeff's desire to teach history comes from his belief that students should be empowered through their education. Teaching culturally relevant history that is unafraid of exposing both the great and the terrible events in our past is what drives Jeff to want to teach students in an urban area. To Jeff, understanding history is about “understanding complex relationships.” Getting students to see the benefit in studying history can be a challenge, but it is one Jeff relishes. “Having worked in college admissions and visited dozens of high schools around the country, I have seen up close the kind of disparity that exists in educational opportunity between the most and least advantaged students in our country. As a history teacher, I seek to offer my students the tools necessary to make sense of the world in which they live, and the to change it if they see fit to do so.”

THE INSIDE SCOOP: “What has surprised me most so far are all the amazing people I have met in this program and at HGSE. I have to be honest; I was worried that in coming to Harvard, I might find myself among a certain kind of people I had stereotyped in my mind. What I found here was an amazing group of future educators who are passionate about many of the same things I am. It's inspiring to be around a group of incredibly talented and motivated people who have decided to apply their talents to teaching!”

“HGSE is a small community where the opportunity exists to get to know the members of your cohort, as well as your professors, very well. HGSE is big enough to have a great diversity of ideas, and small enough to let you find your own place in the community.”

“I have learned that there is nothing more political in our society than education. Everything you do, everything you include, and everything you exclude from your classroom and your curriculum is a direct reflection of the values and beliefs of your practice. As a teacher, your responsibility to your students goes far beyond simply imparting knowledge and assessing comprehension. You are the guide for your students as they pave their own personal road towards the future. It is a difficult task, but an awe-inspiring one as well.”