Now officially a part of the social studies department, Mr. Jason Henshaw leaps into this school year as Tower’s newest class adviser, communication camp group leader, and basketball coach! We all know Mr. Henshaw as the newest edition to the history squad, but do we really know who he is? Last year, he began his career at WWT as a substitute for Mr. Rohloff and seemed to fit right in – this could be due to the fact that he himself is a Tower Alumni! After spending a year at Tower, around mid-July, Henshaw received the news that he was to become a permanent teacher and he was ecstatic.
“Mr. Mackenzie was my History teacher in high school and the reason I wanted to become a teacher,” Henshaw recalls. Henshaw attended Eastern Michigan University, majoring in Social Studies and minoring in History. Prior to his work at WWT, Henshaw worked as a waiter at the polish century club, at best buy, a golf course, and even Kroger when he was a teenager.
Henshaw teaches both U.S. History and Economics this curriculum. “Students should come to class expecting to be challenged and have an open mind about the subject matter,” he explains. Previous students also seem to agree. “He tries to involve all of the students and goes over material, answering questions thoroughly,” says Gabrielle Gendron ‘16. She also adds that, “After taking his class, you can expect a better understanding of American History”.
“[Henshaw] is someone who works incredibly hard, has a passion for what he does, is fun loving and light-hearted, and always has a positive attitude,” remarks Mr. Dougherty, head of the Social Studies Department. He adds that Henshaw “fits right in and is very respectful. He has his own ideas and is enthusiastic, making it feel like he has been here all along. His teaching style is similar to that of the entire department — he thinks critically and pushes students to be their best. He also has his unique twist on teaching, which I have even implemented in my own classroom”.
Besides the Social Studies department, some of Henshaw’s favorite coworkers are Mr. Halicki, Mrs. Schmid, and Mr. Evola. Both him and Mr. Evola coach basketball together and this year, Henshaw has taken on the responsibility of Freshman Basketball coach. During his days as a tower student, Henshaw also played basketball and boldly claims himself,” Best reigning shooter in Macomb County since 2002”. Something else exciting on Henshaw’s agenda for this year is communication camp with Mrs. Schmid! “I think it will be a cool experience because I went to Communication Camp when I went to Tower and Mrs. Schmid was my group leader,” he says.
As if teacher, coach, and communication camp leader were not enough, Henshaw has also taken on the challenge of becoming Tower’s newest freshman class advisor. “[I wanted to] get to know more kids and be around for extracurricular activities”, he explains. When he was in high school, Henshaw was voted most spirited in senior mock elections and truly does enjoy this aspect of Tower. “In the future, I’m excited to plan prom”, he says, and adds that he planned his own wedding himself and enjoys planning things.
According to his freshman, Henshaw greatly contributed to the float and freshman pep-rally activities. “He was always there, supplied food, and we got a lot done each day”, Blair Callow ’19, who hosted freshman float, explains. Overall, he seems to have had a good impression on his freshman.
“The highlight of my weekend was when the freshmen beat the seniors at tug of war at pep-rally. I was proud they didn’t get last place and tied the juniors for third. I really enjoyed seeing kids having fun in the stands”, Henshaw reflects.
Outside of his job, Mr. Henshaw leads an interesting life. He has a wife that he dearly loves. She is currently working in Germany until February, which leaves him lonely at home with his cat and his messy house. He tries to look at the bright side of things, saying that he now gets to eat his favorite food three times a week, which is Indian. Henshaw also loves to travel the world. He has been to Germany, Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and England. He hopes to travel next to Thailand and Vietnam. Besides traveling, Mr. Henshaw enjoys going to concerts, buying records, and has season tickets for the U of M.
Based on his hard work, mutual respect from teachers and students, and involvement in the school, Henshaw seems to fit right into the Tower family. Tower can only benefit from having a new teacher that is so involved and truly cares for his students!
No responses yet