Teacher Feature- Mr. Andrekovich
Everyone’s favorite geography teacher- Mr. A has been here for 28 years
“Education is more than just what’s taught in the book. It’s also about developing relationships, communicating, and building friendships along with the book study. You have to be well-rounded.” -Mr. Andrekovich.
We all remember the rigorous expectations of Mr. Tim Andrekovich’s 7th grade world geography class. Maybe you were even lucky enough to have him for 8th grade American history. Do you really know him as well as you think you do? My guess is, probably not.
Mr. Andrekovich has been teaching at the Bellwood-Antis Middle School for 28 years now. He had always had an interest in social studies. And teaching is something he’s always wanted to do. “I guess like anybody else, there were a few teachers who inspired me when I was in school.” Even though this is his 28th year, he said, “I still enjoy it.”
We can all agree that Bellwood-Antis is a small school. All in all, we have a very nice community of teachers and students alike. Mr. Andrekovich likes the BA atmosphere because “everyone looks out for each other. Small community, small classes; everyone gets to know each other. Everybody’s supportive and helpful and that’s what you need in a school.”
He said that even after he is retired from Bellwood-Antis he will still be involved in one way or another. Mr. Andrekovich is the wrestling coach as well as a teacher. He enjoys coaching because he gets to work with the kids and they get a chance to see him in a different light. He says that they get a different perspective on him, rather than what they see in the classroom setting.
Mr. Andrekovich said that he initially liked the idea of being a 12th grade American history teacher but now he’s grateful that he was placed where he is. He said that he honestly believes he is better off with the younger students.
I know geography was one of the hardest classes for me, personally. Mr. Andrekovich admitted to not being prepared to teach world geography when he first started here. He said, “I kind of learned as I taught.”
If he wasn’t a teacher, he said he would most likely be doing something in law enforcement such as being a state policeman, an FBI agent, or even doing something that involves the military.
On one last note, Mr. Andrekovich said that we wants to be remembered as a teacher who tried to make his classes as interesting and as relevant as possible.