Professionlism

“Steve recognizes that the role of the teacher extends beyond the classroom walls. He learns about his students, supports them in acquiring strong literacy skills and serves as a model of empathy and commitment. He attends their events outside of school and celebrates important moments in their lives with their families. Countless students have benefitted from his encouragement and support, and many connect with him after graduation to thank him for the support that he gave them on their learning journey.”

Transformation

“He is truly a force for positive change. He  approaches things differently. By positively disrupting the status quo, he is able to encourage  the people around him to address things from new perspectives, to encourage interaction, to  look at the broader picture – without forgetting the details. His commitment to break down  barriers in creative ways to open the eyes and minds of a child in his classroom is very special.  The willingness to help support, encourage, engage, shape, guide and push a student is endless.”

Collaboration and Innovation

Whether it’s in his English classroom down the hall from me, in our building (Coffman High School), in our district (Dublin City Schools), at The Ohio State University, or with ACT or the rest of the list of collaborations he’s fostered over time. Steve is always working on his practice. Steve works tirelessly for each of his students. This year (there probably isn’t a class in our course handbook he hasn’t taught), he has two sections of freshman English and three sections of junior English. He inspires, individualizes, and innovates ways to reach each of them. I have an email folder labeled ‘Kucinski’ where I drop all the golden tidbits of sites, articles, blogs, tweets, that he has sent. Things that I may use today in class or may shift my practices over time, or just theorize about the future of the profession.