After Christmas break, Catholic Central welcomed the new English Teacher, Dr. Auburn Sheaffer. Sheaffer has worked on the college level for the past several years, but she is delighted to return to working on the high school level.
Sheaffer describes her job as, “help[ing] students treasure literature, the art and craft of the written word, ideas, and catholic principles in a way that provides room for them to explore, wonder, pursue their curiosity and ask interesting questions of themselves, life and the world around us. My job is to create spaces where inquiry is celebrated, not feared, and a means to arriving at capital T truth.”
Unlike many other teachers at CC, Sheaffer has no previous connection to the school. She said she chose this job because, “in the process of becoming a Catholic, I felt my inner priorities begin to make subtle shifts. Gradually I came to be committed to the idea that I wanted to offer my gifts and skills to Catholic educational institutions. For me, they are among the few educational places left in our world that won’t budge, at least in principle, on the vocal and lived defense of ‘human dignity.’”
Sheaffer says that so far the job has been full of “so much joy week to week. So much learning. Lots of change. Lots of impressions that have taken time to clarify into more working knowledge. I love returning to some beloved writers I haven’t spent time with in years and thinking through ways to share them with students. Just about every day, one or more students make my day with an observation, insight or seriously high-quality project that they really put their heart and soul into. Students sometimes come up with points of view I hadn’t considered and that’s exhilarating.”
Sheaffer has been enjoying her job very much and says that her favorite part of the job so far is that “the building and classroom environment is cooperative and peaceful enough that I can leave a room for a moment. Kids can be trusted to work on projects outside the classroom or run small errands without constant one-on-one supervision. This frees us all up for movement and conversation and for me to get to know students more individually and in their chosen work/friend groups.”
Sheaffer has been a welcome addition to the CC faculty and it’s exciting to see how she will continue to grow as a member of the CC community. Be sure to stop by room 410 to say hi.
