Mr. David Rowan

What or who inspired you to become a teacher?

Within a month of each other back in 2007 our son was born, and my best friend was killed in a car accident. Because of this I went through a period of self-reflection on the things that were most important to me: how I could be the best husband and father, how I could honor my friend, and how I could make a difference in the world in the time I had. My mom and dad were both teachers and I knew without a doubt that teaching was the path forward to fulfilling those things that were important to me.

What do you love about Westgate?

What attracted me to Westgate, and what I continue to love, is our whole-child approach to education where social-emotional learning is coupled with academic learning. When students learn the skills of managing their emotions, building relationships, developing empathy, and making responsible decisions, they thrive both personally and academically.

If you could time travel, what year would you visit?

As a historian this is such a hard question for me to answer. While I’m passionate about the Civil War era and I would have loved to have been part of the Civil Rights movement and heard Dr. King speak, the period I would most want to visit would be the time when Jesus was alive to experience first-hand his life and teachings.

What one idea do you hope to inspire your students with?

Each student has within them infinite potential, the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness apply to all people and when self-doubt starts to creep in repeat this mantra: you’re smarter than you think, braver than you seem, stronger than you feel, and you can do hard things.