Staff Interviews

This week, I have decided to interview our new student teacher, Mr. McCandless. Mr. McCandless is our one and only student teacher for the duration of the year. He can be found alongside Mr. Rathbun as he works his way throughout the entirety of this school year.

The first question I asked Mr. McCandless was “Where are you currently attending college?”, to which he responded with “Montana State University in Bozeman.”

Next, I asked him “Have you always been interested in teaching?” 

“Yes, but I didn’t think of it as a profession until I had done a few years in mechanical engineering.” was his response, followed by telling me how he’s always been interested in education.

“What’s one thing you really enjoy about Park City?” was the next question, and he replied with, “As someone who has always been in bigger schools…I’ve been very surprised about how much I enjoy a smaller school and community.”

To oppose the last question, I then asked, “If you could change anything about this school, what would you change?” and he responded with, “That’s hard because I haven’t been here for that long,” so I rephrased it and asked, “What is one issue you have within the school?”

“No…I think there’s some small things…but one small thing is that they do the Pledge of Allegiance at the speed for the elementary,” was his response.

Finally, I asked, “What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced throughout your time in college?” to which he responded with, “Overall, I say this as, some years it was harder and sometimes it wasn’t…but time management. College is a great place to make friends, but it comes with a cost if you don’t balance your time.”

Mr. McCandless has shown his interest in not only education, but engagement with the students as well. We’re lucky to have him joining us for this year as he shadows Mr. Rathbun, and eventually, taking control and showing his skills to all our high school science classes.