George Knight

Name: George Knight
Graduated: Spring 2013
Major: Mathematics with Emphasis in Education
CSI3 Undergraduate Program: NOYCE
Hobbies: Sewing/ Working Out/ Basketball/ Video Games
Email: Mrgknight17@gmail.com

What is your current status?
Currently in my 9th year of Teaching working as Math Teacher at King/Drew Magnet High School of Medicine and Science where I teach Honors Geometry, Geometry, Algebra 2, and Precalculus. Out of all the schools I could be working at, King/Drew holds a very special place in my heart because it is where I graduated High School from. I hope that I can follow the legacy of those teachers who have taught and continue to teach here. Besides teaching I am the Sponsor for the Architecture, Construction, and Engineering Club on our campus.

What do you enjoy the most about your current status?
What I enjoy most about working at my high school is I get work not only building the future through my teaching, but I also get to build onto the legacy of a school that helped mold me into the person I am today.

If you could give your junior/senior year self any words of advice what would you say?
If I could give my Junior/Senior year self any words of advice it would be “Be bold in what you are doing. Yes, the work you are doing is hard, but It has a greater effect than you know. Your presents change the dynamic of the rooms that you enter. Your Energy is contagious and appreciated, so give it and don’t hold back in giving it.”

What has been one of the biggest lessons you have learned upon graduating?
The biggest lesson I have learned upon graduating is that the only constant in this world is energy and change. Energy is transferred from everything you do so no matter what I do I need to make it positive so the positivity will come back. Change is constant because no matter what you do things will change so you must be willing to change with it or fear being lost to it.

What keeps you motivated and positive throughout life’s hardships?
One of the biggest things that keeps me motivated is where I come from, and I don’t mean my community. I was a part of a very special group of teachers that came from the Transition To Teaching Program under Dr. Kamal Hamdan. Throughout that program he not only instilled a passion within us for teaching but he also had us remember to always teacher from the heart. He inspired me to not only teach but also that I can always give in some type of way to support my students. He was a prime example of what it means to be a teacher and what it takes to be a teacher.

Is there anyone from the CSI3 programs you would like to thank or give a shout-out to?
Is there anyone to Thank and Give a SHOUT OUT TO.(don’t include this it was just my initial response to the question CSI3 is Family), Noemi for being the first person to greet me and welcome me into NOYCE that set me up to be successful in my undergrad through tutoring as well as any opportunity to secure a successful career in education. Xio for setting up and assisting through the process of becoming a teacher as well as facilitating various opportunities transitioning from different schools. Then Last but not Lease Dr. Hamdan for taking the steps away from teaching to create programs to create teachers who have become the mover and shakers of various School Districts throughout Los Angeles. I have been blessed by each one of these individuals and honestly, I could not be where I am or who I am without them.