Hello, and welcome to my English webpage!
My name is Mr. James Garner and I have been in the teaching profession for over 27 years. Prior to teaching Berea Bulldogs, I taught and/or coached another group of Bulldogs at Decatur High School in Decatur, Arkansas, for more than two decades. I also taught at Lincoln High School in Lincoln, Arkansas, and Alluwe High School in Alluwe, Oklahoma.
Before settling on teaching, I was the Assistant Managing Editor and Chief Photographer for The Benton County Daily Record and Community Publishers, Inc., of Bentonville, Arkansas. I acted as the General Manager of the Gentry Courier-Journal and as a contributing editor for the Siloam Springs Herald-Leader.
I put myself through college as a part-time musician and as an editor, writer, and photographer for The Tahlequah Daily Pictorial Press, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
This year, I will teach English III CP with a clear focus on college skills, having been an AP English Literature and Composition and AP English Language and Composition teacher for 25 years and an AP Exam Reader since 2008.
I am also an endorsed College Board Consultant for AP English Literature and Composition and I facilitate AP English workshops and summer institutes for new teachers through universities around the country.
I was a featured speaker at EdmodoCon 2014 and have also made presentations at National Conferences since 2012, including the AP Annual Conference, the National Council of Teachers of English Convention, and the National Association for Gifted Children Conference.
I was raised on a small ranch inside the reservation of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, where I learned to ride horses, build fences, weld, care for livestock, and maintain a wide range of vehicles and heavy equipment, expecting to become a diesel mechanic/technician or, like my grandfathers, go into the military.
Instead, I began taking college classes at Northeastern State University, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, while I was in high school and I earned scholarships that allowed me to start my formal degree program at the University of Oklahoma in Norman and receive both my bachelor's and master's degrees from NSU.
My work experiences include everything from baling hay, working in poultry-processing facilities, cooking fast food, building houses, repairing semi trucks, operating heavy equipment, and participating in corporate asset protection, to professional (wedding/event/news/sports) photography, editing professional publications, managing businesses, traveling, presenting to international audiences, training future teachers, and much more. This gives me a broad range of ways to connect with students as they are making choices for the future and need to know why reading, writing, and formal speaking skills matter.
When I look back at how education improved my parents' lives (from living in log cabins with dirt floors to building successful businesses), my life, and the lives of my children (now out of college themselves), I want that advantage and more for every student.
"Those who do not read have no advantage over those who cannot read." - Mark Twain
The best way to contact me is via email: jcgarner@greenvilleschools.us or jcgarner@greenville.k12.sc.us
My phone number is (864) 355-1650.