One Year One Mission – Dr. Robert Scott brings wealth of experience to DJDS

Once he got the position at Denver Jewish Day School, the administration told Dr. Robert Scott to come for orientation in three days. Without hesitation, he packed his bags and took the first flight from Kansas to Colorado. “I saw this ad, and the way it reminded me of the first school I ever taught at in Ecuador, I knew I had to take up the offer,” Scott said. “I got a sort of nostalgic feeling.” 

Scott creates ties with that same school, the Alberto Einstein School, as part of the “Quito project,” with history teacher and upcoming Principal Dr. Jeremy Golubcow Teglasi.  DJDS students connect with Alberto Einstein students via Zoom and discuss the differences between living in Ecuador and Colorado. 

Scott attributes his draw to the Jewish community and its culture to his strong Christian upbringing. “I come from Kansas, maybe my manners aren’t the greatest,” he said. “I did learn growing up to respect faith.”

 Scott received his undergraduate degree in English literature with a minor in Spanish and biology while participating in the KU honors program for four years. Scott graduated from KU with a B.A. in English in 1980 and an M.A. in curriculum design and instruction in 1984.

After that, Scott began a career as an international teacher that took him to countries like Ecuador, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. He later lived for 10 years in New York City before moving back to Kansas in 2002, where he had worked for more than 20 years as a teacher, educator, and advocate for students and families from diverse backgrounds and students with special needs. 

With both Kansas TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages) and Kansas CEC (Council for Exceptional Children), Scott has held the positions of webmaster and president. His lifetime goal of earning his doctorate in special education from Kansas State University was finally realized in 2011. Robert Scott has four bilingual or multilingual children, along with three grandkids. `

Dr. Scott believes in content-based teaching and learning. Still, he claims “It depends on an instructor who cares about what is interesting and relevant to his or her students.” In his published book, “Teaching Content”, an instructional guide for educators he writes:  “Communicative teaching can only happen when the teacher has something compelling to share and knows how to motivate learners to develop self-confidence so that they, too, feel free to express their ideas”. 

Dr. Scott lost his parents when he was just a senior in high school. “I was just thinking about my father, maybe as I was reading about Asher’s dad,” Scott said, referring to “My Name is Asher Lev” by Chaim Potok, the book the current 8th graders are reading. Scott’s parents both passed away in a plane crash in October of 1975, but that didn’t stop him from getting married three years later and pursuing his career in education. 

Though Dr. Robert Scott is only here at DJDS for the 2022- 2023 school year, he truly enjoys every moment he gets. “This is the nicest school I’ve ever been in,” Scott said. “If I were younger, I would do everything possible to stay here. I am truly lucky.”