Whether it’s American history or economics, Mr. Mike Whalen is always ready to start the day.

“I wake up at about 5 a.m. I shower, get ready, and I meditate each day for 20 minutes,” Whalen said. “And then I come into work early in the morning. Most days I try to be here by 6:30. Some days I can’t make it in that early.”

Every teacher has their own way of preparing for their day of teaching, Whalen said he does so by putting himself in his students’ shoes.

“I try to take into account the content they need to know and the amount of material they need to know at the same time,” Whalen said.

“We (teachers) have to turn in our lesson plans each week,” Whalen said. “So every Sunday I will sit down, and I’ll hammer out my lesson plans, and I’ll chunk each day of the week in a way I feel is best for the students to understand.”

Whalen said that he knew from a young age that he wanted to become a teacher one day. The good teachers that have been in his life are what made him choose the teaching lifestyle.

“Growing up I didn’t have it the easiest, I would say, and I had a lot teachers who were there for me and willing to help me along the way and guide me into the person I am today,” Whalen said.

Every teacher has taken different steps to get where they are today. Whalen would like to make himself into the best teacher he can be while being an advocate for education.

By doing so, Whalen ran for his local board of education at the age of 18 and is still currently a member of the Mt. Morris Board of Education.

In addition, Whalen wanted to expand his education beyond the traditional scope most teachers follow.

“I went to college to become a social studies teacher, my minor was English, (and) I studied abroad in Finland to study their education system,” Whalen said.

After college, Whalen began student teaching with Mr. Andy Nester and, eventually, a teaching position opened up.

Though students don’t usually think about it, teachers are people too. Like any other job, coworkers will form relationships.

“I’d say we all have a really good relationship, especially the social studies teachers,” Whalen said. “We might have different world views or perspectives on things, but we can have lively debates.”

It’s very clear that Whalen enjoys his job as a teacher. Everyday he likes to get the students excited about what they are going to learn and excels at keeping HIS students’ attention.

“My favorite part about teaching is helping students learn how to overcome obstacles,” Whalen said. “Whether it’s inside the classroom or out.”