Teacher Tuesday – Meet Mr. Wickline!

Meet Mr. Wickline

Mr. Wickline is starting his first full year at APS and he teaches Computer Science.  Previous roles included four years as a Business & Info Tech. teacher at Justice High School in FCPS and many years in various roles in the retirement plan industry.

When asked how he became interested in working with kids/teaching Mr. Wickline replied, “What started it for me was helping out coaching my daughter’s soccer team and realizing that it was one of the few things I was doing where I felt a part of the community. I enjoyed helping the players on the team and a friend I knew had switched careers to teach and I started looking into it.”

Mr. Wickline shares his greatest joy and biggest challenges of the job.  “I enjoy helping students overcome obstacles to make progress and seeing or hearing about them being proud of what they accomplished. The biggest challenge is teaching a high school level class to seventh graders, which is made more difficult online as the class time seems to go quickly and I find it harder to get to everyone that needs help than I could in a classroom.”

We asked Mr. Wickline how he keeps himself motivated and challenged to be the best teacher he can be to which he replied, “I have always been a change agent and was fortunate to be in positions where I was able to implement changes to improve operations, products, etc. I do the same as a teacher and perhaps more so this year as I have younger students in a course that really challenges most of them and I am continually thinking of how to make things better for them. I really do not have a choice as that is how I am wired. “

Mr. Wickline has not been reading for fun these days but is hoping to get back to it soon.  “I recently read Astoria, which was about John Jacob Astor establishing a trading post on the coast of Washington when there was nothing there and the trials and tribulations of those involved.”

Mr. Wickline’s dream job, “I like biology and I am a bit of a health nut. I think I would have enjoyed being a doctor.”