“Find what you like to do first, and then turn it into a career”
Tecumseh High School Industrial Technology teacher John Kame was named the Teacher of the Year by the New Carlisle Rotary Club last week. Kame, who has been teaching at Tecumseh since 1982, said he strives to instill the importance of community involvement and alternative education options in his students.
Each year, New Carlisle Rotary presents the Outstanding Teacher Award to eligible educators from the Tecumseh and Northwestern School Districts. Eligible teachers must maintain at least five years of continual service to one of the participating districts. The winner receives a $500 cash prize and commemorative school bell.
Kame was nominated by Susan Wile, Tecumseh’s Special Education Coordinator and Ivan Gehret Principal at Tecumseh High School. Kame said he has never been nominated for this award before, but that he was named employee of the month at the high school earlier this year.
Kame’s students participate in one of Clark County’s largest fundraisers for Second Harvest Food Bank by creating spoons in woodshop for Wittenberg’s Empty Bowls. The charitable event raises tens of thousands of dollars each year for Second Harvest Food Bank, and Kame’s students created 200 wooden spoons to be auctioned off to restaurant donors involved in the event. In metal shop, his students also created a metal hanger to hold hanging flower baskets in the courtyard of a New Carlisle nursing home.
“We designed and produced 150 plaques to hang spoons for numerous years of involvement with the Empty Bowls fundraiser. In addition to learning woodworking skills, my students understand what a food bank is and how it works to provide services to the community,” said Kame.
Student recognition is also imperative to Kame’s teaching method. Last year, he created the Industrial Technology Student of the Month program, where selected students are awarded a certificate of recognition and $100 gift card to Ace Handyman. Also, by soliciting donations, Kame has been able to build up the department’s longstanding Golden Hammer Award by providing a $5,000 scholarship that goes to the educational program of the winner’s choice. Kame said this may include trade schools, apprenticeships, certificate programs, adult night classes, or traditional college credits.
Students in Kame’s classes are exposed to a variety of alternative education programs available upon graduating from high school.
“I look at high school Industrial Technology classes as one of the best ways to develop problem-solving skills. Most of our assignments are directly related to project based results,” said Kame. “My students feel a great sense of self-satisfaction through the completion of projects and /or competition with classmates. I develop skills that can be used at home or to make a living,” he said.
Kame said it was an honor to be selected among all the teachers in the Tecumseh district, and said he was honored to know that his colleagues thought that highly of him.
“I try to leave my students with the philosophy of find what you like to do first, and then turn it into a career,” said Kame.
