Standing at the front of his classroom, Mr. Stefon Andrews admires his work, observing the walls adorned with maps and historical snapshots, giving students a clear glimpse into the past. This year marks his first year teaching in the Westwood community, a year in which he hopes to ignite students’ passion for world history and geography. 

“Everybody’s really warm and welcoming, and it’s a great collegial environment,” Mr. Andrews said. “All the kids are happy to be here. They’re excited to do their work, or, if not excited, at least ready to do their work.” 

Before standing at the head of a classroom, Mr. Andrews walked a winding path to discover a career he would truly love to have. His journey took a pivotal turn in the halls of Southern Methodist University, where he pursued a master’s degree in history. 

“History has really been the only subject that I’ve ever felt passionate about,” Mr. Andrews said. “I’ve had a lot of other jobs but eventually I needed to get serious about the thing I really love to do, and so I decided that I wanted to teach history.”

Mr. Andrews’ teaching philosophy centers on making history relatable and engaging. As history can often seem like a distant subject to many, he aims to make the content accessible by connecting it to students’ lives and exploring the experiences of ordinary people in various eras.

“The best way to learn history is to learn it through stories,” Mr. Andrews said. “When I was in high school, my favorite teacher was my US History teacher. He was a great storyteller and was the one who inspired me to follow it as my career. If you can engage kids with something that’s more than just a dry date, you can actually make them understand why people were doing the things they were doing [in the past], and see that the reasons people chose to do the things they did are not any different than the reasons they would choose to do the things they do now.”

Mr. Andrews’ enthusiasm for history shines through every aspect of his teaching. While he’s excited to teach all historical periods, his eyes light up as he admits a particular enthusiasm for modern history.

“My favorite part of history [is] the 20th century,” Mr. Andrews said. “The Worldwide Depression is going to be [a] fascinating [topic]. Of course, the World Wars [and] the Cold War is my specialty, in fact, that’s what I went to Southern Methodist [University] for. But I love [history], I love all of it. I’m a big history nerd.”

“My favorite place that [my family and I have] gone together was Alaska,” Mr. Andrews said. “It’s just absolutely beautiful. We took this really nice boat trip out to a place called Fox Island, which is just south of Anchorage, and it was just one of the most beautiful experiences of our lives. We also took this really great train trip up into the mountains, [and] we [saw] the whole town up there. You just can’t imagine how different it looks up there. You’re in the middle of the summer and the sun never goes down, so everything’s beautifully silver the whole time.”

Owning up to his Texas roots, Mr. Andrews also dabbles in BBQ, a hobby he picked up during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Well, like most people that [picked up] some kind of weird hobby when Covid was going on, [I] got into smoking meats because I was stuck at the house, [and now] it’s something I like to do,” Mr. Andrews said. 

As he settles into his new role on campus, Mr. Andrews exudes enthusiasm and optimism as he prepares to inspire a new generation of history and geography enthusiasts. 

“I am really happy to be here,” Mr. Andrews said. “I think all [my students] are great kids, and I’m excited to see what we can accomplish this year!”