When you walk down North Hall at Washington High School, one of the first things you see is a man standing outside his classroom door, saying hello and telling an endless supply of  "Dad Jokes" to any passersby to brighten their day. Constantly stopping to have conversations with students, with a big smile plastered on his face, and radiating a positive aura. This man is Washington High School's very own beloved French teacher, Mr. Bill Gore.

Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Gore and asking him to share some final words of wisdom for his students and memories from his years of teaching before his retirement this summer from Washington High School.

Mr. Gore has been teaching at WHS for about 32 years, starting in 1992. He began teaching when he was 24-years-old, but this almost wasn't the case. He stated that when he first got the offer to work at WHS, he initially turned it down. Later, he realized that turning it down was a mistake, saying that “it seemed like the best opportunity" that he was given. Additionally, it was close to where he lived, which also helped him make the final decision. Some people who influenced Mr. Gore to become a teacher were his family, including his parents and two of his aunts, some of whom were teachers. 

His passion for French started in high school. Like many of his students, his love of the Parisian way of life grew when he took a French class and fell in love with the language, history, culture, and the country of France itself. His college professors hugely influenced this love of all things French, and who, like Mr. Gore, formed strong connections with their students.

However, Mr. Gore admits that teaching also comes with its struggles. One of the biggest challenges he faces is student attendance. When a student misses too many days, it's hard to teach them if they are not present to learn. Another challenge is engaging students when they don't want to participate in the lesson. Like any job, teaching has ups and downs and can sometimes be tiring.

Nevertheless, teaching is Mr. Gore's passion, although teaching is not all he does at WHS. For instance, he has taken his students on field trips abroad to France. These field trips are among Mr. Gore's favorite memories at WHS. He is also the head coordinator for WHS's longstanding tradition of Stunt Night, an event where freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior classes compete by performing student-written plays for a panel of judges. This event is meaningful to Mr. Gore because he didn't participate in similar activities in high school and vicariously experiences it through his students who enjoy themselves immensely. 

Mr. Gore has such a positive impact at WHS as well as on his community. He was nominated for and received a DPAC Longfellow Local Hero Award this year honoring his service to the local community.  Mr. Gore was also Washington High School's 2023 Teacher of the Year. He is a devoted husband and father of two daughters; and he is an active member of his church in Greenville, NC.

Upon his retirement, here are some words of advice that he leaves for his students:

"Do your best in everything you do regardless of whether it's for a grade or not, remembering that your chance to be in school is going to pay off a lot in the future, and there are many people in the world who do not have the opportunity to be in school like you do, and they would love to be here."

He also gave advice that can be given to anyone, not just students:

“Find someone for whom you can be the wind beneath their wings.” 

Suitable advice from Mr. Gore.

To summarize, Mr. Bill Gore's influence on Washington High School is immense. His dedication, passion, and positive impact have created beautiful memories for decades. As he retires after 32 years, his parting words remind us of the value of education and supporting one another. His advice to always do your best and to uplift others is something that everyone should follow, even outside out of school. Mr. Gore will be deeply missed, but his contributions and the memories he created for all will continue to inspire future generations. 

To Mr. Gore we say, 

"Merci et au revoir, tu vas nous manquer!"

In May 2024, I was tasked with interviewing the Washington High School and Beaufort County Schools 2024 Teacher of the Year, Candi Tucker. I will be honest, it was quite a hassle to locate Mrs. Tucker for the interview because she's always on the move working on various projects and tasks for the school. I searched far and wide- up and down West Hall to South Hall- eventually, I found her in Mrs. Jessica Adams’ room (discussing the next big event or stint for our high school) and inquired if she was available to answer some questions about her years of education experience. She obliged and we then headed to a small conference room located in the school Media Center to complete the interview. 

Speaking with Mrs. Tucker proved exactly why she was chosen as not only Washington High School's but Beaufort County Schools' 2024 Teacher of the Year. She has been in the teaching game for 28 years thus showcasing her dedication and mastery of the educational field. She explained that she chose to pursue teaching as she was offered support through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Teaching Fellows Program, a prestigious scholarship program that supports potential teaching candidates in agreement that the scholar will become a teacher post-college graduation.

In college, she studied Social Studies and English Education, indicating her expertise in what she teaches here at Washington High School as a well-informed Social Studies teacher. After discussing a little bit about her academic journey, Mrs. Tucker admitted that she is a self-proclaimed “government geek”. 

She was recently acknowledged as a major contributor in assisting Beaufort County Board of Elections in earning the 2023 Distinguished Voter Education and Communications Initiatives Award via the Bringing Local Government to Your Classroom program, a classroom-based voter education initiative which "convenes election administrators, students, educators, and elected officials to foster civic engagement, with a particular focus on the importance of voting" that Mrs. Tucker co-developed along with area Elections Director Kellie Harris Hopkins. 

Earlier in the 2023-2024 school year, she was awarded with the Morehead Cain Education Impact Award and used the grant to attend the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP) which allowed her to meet with state and federal lawmakers about education and legislation.

An interesting detail Mrs. Tucker shared was during her college years at "Carolina", she was recruited (following the fall of the Soviet Union) to teach English as a second language to Russian children. She lived with three other American girls while teaching in Russia with whom she created a lifelong bond. Mrs. Tucker commented that the experience was not only enriching and rewarding (as well as extremely snowy and cold at -37 degrees) but, “living in a country so different from our own makes me appreciate all that we have.”

It is her passion to bring her rich experiences and knowledge as well as partner with the local Board of Elections and elected officials (local, state, and national) to keep abreast of government practices, societal issues, voter's rights and to be able to bring this information back to the students in her classroom in order to grow a new generation of knowledgeable, educated, and well-informed voters. Mrs. Tucker also assists her students of age and eligibility with registering to vote each year. She is the quintessential advocate for student and teacher programs that will allow both students and teachers to grow.