Profile

Grades 9–12, Social Studies and Athletics

Saugus High School, Saugus

William S. Hart Union High School District, Los Angeles County

According to his students, high school social studies teacher, Jim Klipfel is a "caring teddy bear" with high energy and serious intensity, who respects them as equals, shares his lunch, and listens to their problems. Jim sees himself as the teacher who says, "Be Toto and pull back the curtain," the teacher who model sacrifice and service, and welcomes dissent and diversity.

Jim's driving philosophy is Kaizen, a Japanese term meaning unrelenting improvement, and to that end, he and his like-minded colleagues designed a ninth-grade orientation that is now in its second decade. Over 50 older student mentors were recruited and trained, and given copies of Sean Covey's book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. Mr. Klipfel personally led sessions on character, organization, relationships, and hard work, in order to promote a successful high school experience.

Increasing classroom-community connections is one of Jim's strategies for creating an effective school that is a haven for kids and a way to redirect students back into their communities. Taking his students into Los Angeles to visit the Central Library for a research project is always an exciting adventure for them, as many have never ridden public transportation, walked in Los Angeles, or used a large library. He believes that they cannot value community infrastructure if they are unaware of it. As Mr. Klipfel puts it, "Classroom-community relationships are critical arrows in my educator's quiver."

Jim believes that the mental health of the young is perhaps the top challenge facing educators. Each year he finds himself stepping back more often from content in order to teach kids about healthy living. In doing so, he tells them daily stories to help them get organized, take risks and recover from setbacks. He explains, "I'm famous for saying: 'Be brave, not perfect.'"

A colleague says of Mr. Klipfel, "This is a teacher who goes to school before dawn with trays of muffins to fuel his students for morning study sessions. This is a teacher who doesn't think twice about running out into an open quad during a school shooting because he sees students on the ground and he needs to save them. This is your Teacher of the Year."