The Wakefield Staff Members of the Year are stand out members of our community. Wakefield wouldn’t be the same without them. Congrats to Mr. Lutz and Mr. Smith. I had the opportunity to interview them after they were told they won.

Mr. Lutz is an English teacher who has taught at Wakefield for 31 years.

When Mr. Lutz won Teacher of the Year, he was both  “confused and honored” to win because he says, ” I work with a lot of amazing teachers, and it felt humbling that among all of the amazing teachers, someone took the time to nominate me.” After winning, Mr. Lutz took this accomplishment as a time to “reevaluate and reflect on my professional life.” Mr. Lutz says that teaching has changed a lot through the years. When he started teaching in 1993,” it was like the Wild West; nobody ever checked on you, and you could do whatever you wanted.” In that sense, he says, “change has been good.” In other senses, however, change, including a continuing focus on data collection through systematic tests and navigating the higher incorporation of technology into education, has “been some of the challenges that have come with changes in teaching.”  However, he says, ” I really love working with students. The best part of my day is when students make me think and laugh,” which is something about teaching he says, “that will never change.”

Mr. Lutz has learned from teaching that “none of us ever really have something totally figured out. I can teach the same poem repeatedly, year after year, and still learn and notice new things from students I never thought about that completely changed my understanding of the poem. We are all constantly learning and growing in this whirling turn of change. Because of that, I check myself when I begin thinking I know everything about something because I can guarantee that among my students, there are people I am teaching who are more intelligent than I am; I’m just older.” Mr. Lutz told me about a lot of the remarkable students he has met over the years and even referenced a student who was an Olympic kayaker in high school and who is now an accomplished “Indiana Jones” type archeologist. Often he says, “in quiet moments I find myself wondering what happened to past students.” He loves teaching in high school because he says, “I love being a part of students’ lives where they are at this juncture and transitional moment of their lives and are discovering who they are.” Mr. Lutz says that is why he adores teaching English so much. He loves helping students discover their voice, “whether in writing or speaking” because he says, “it’s a valuable skill to have in life and as long as students leave this place feeling a little bit more confident about what they have to say verses when I meet them then I know I have prepared them for the next part of their lives and that feels good.” Thanks, Mr. Lutz.

Mr. Smith is a staff member who was a student at Wakefield, and has now worked here for five years. He organized and runs Brothers Stick Together, a mentorship program. When he first heard he won Staff of the Year, Mr. Smith says he “was in shock.”  Mr. Smith was off work the day he got the call that he won Staff of the Year, and initially, he says, “When I got the call, I thought I was in trouble.” However, once he realized he had won, Mr. Smith said he “almost shed a tear,” afterward, he called his mom to tell her about his accomplishment.

When asked about his favorite TV show, Mr. Smith said,” It’s this show called The Neighborhood, which I think is on Hulu. It’s about these two neighbors, one of them who has just moved in, who are trying to get along. It’s a journey.” Mr. Smith’s favorite genre of music is “90s R&B.” He has a mix of favorite artists but says,” My favorite artists right now would probably have to be NBA Young Boy and Rod Wave.” From 2012 to 2014, Mr. Smith attended Wakefield High School for his freshman through junior years and then graduated from Freedom High School in Woodbridge. In high school, he says, ” I was heavily into sports and didn’t expand away from sports very much.” Mr. Smith says Wakefield was “a little strict back then, but still, there were many cool people there.” Wakefield has changed since he attended here. “There is a lot more freedom and chances for students and teachers to have a voice and a lot of acceptance and opportunity for kids just to be themselves.”

Mr. Smith’s favorite thing about the kids here is “being able to check on them and make sure everybody’s doing good. “And being a part of the Life Skills department, no matter how I am feeling, every day, I’m always going to get a good greeting from a student. Mr. Smith calls Wakefield his second home, “It may sound weird, but this is my happy place.” He would advise students to stay motivated; “People do more for you when you do more for yourself.” Through mentoring students, Mr. Smith has learned to be a “bigger opportunist,” and has improved in “listening to others, and reaching out to students that some teachers and other people wouldn’t be able to reach,” not only has he improved in teaching but also he says, “I have improved as a person.” 

It was inspiring to interview these two Staff members of the year. Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition.