Hero of the Month: Jeff Faulkner

/ Los Angeles / By

FEBRUARY 2014

Jeff Faulkner teaches science at C.W. Stanford, where he helped get the Mind-Body Program started .  He sets a great example, encouraging his students by participating in our yoga class each week.

Here’s what Jeff thinks about Y.O.G.A. for Youth:

  • The Y.O.G.A. for Youth program is a perfect fit for the theme and vision of CIS Mind/Body after-school. Our program focuses not only on the academic health of the student but also the physical, emotional, and inner health of the students and teachers.

  • We have so many distractions in our daily life and we sometimes forget that also applies to the daily lives of our children. Yoga practice allows a moment of reflection and peace that is essential for all of us. Our students have so much change thrown at them that it can be difficult to stay in tune with oneself. More importantly, the practice and self-reflection allows you to be more aware of what is around you.

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  • It is important that adult participate along with the students. Children, of course, imitate and emulate adults and their important peers. Sharing the practice with the students is essential for promotion of the practice.

  • Yoga for Youth has not just been for our students. the practice has been a very important part of my life and on the occasions when the schedule does not permit, I miss it. The program definitely promotes a stronger connection between students and teachers.

  • The relationships we develop in practice carries over to positive practices in the classroom – for students and teachers.

Thanks for everything that you do, Jeff!

Jeff Faulkner is an eighth grade science teacher at Charles W. Stanford Middle School in Hillsborough, NC (Orange County Schools – OCS). He has taught secondary science for 8 years. He holds a Masters in Secondary Education and is a Doctor of Education candidate in Organizational Leadership from Grand Canyon University (GCU). Jeff has Received Educational Testing Service Special Recognition for General Science Content Knowledge PRAXIS test, Center for Teaching Quality – ASSET Fellow, NC Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) member, OCS District Science Curriculum Planner.  He a science teacher-leader for OCS, a 2013 Duke University/Pratt School of Engineering RET Fellow, North Carolina Science Teachers Association (NCSTA) 2013 – District 5 Outstanding Middle/Jr High Teacher of the Year, and a 2012-2013 Kenan Fellow.