Mr. Bushnell, SHS English teacher, shares history and words of wisdom
By Mathew Meyers
Colin Bushnell may be known for his work in the classroom, but what made him want to be a teacher in the first place? What is he like beyond assigning essays and book reports? Well, Mr. Bushnell was more than happy to tell us.
Mr. Bushnell teaches ninth-grade English at SHS, as well as a few electives, such as Crime Literature. When asked about his favorite class to teach here, he told us, “I’ve taught a lot of subjects here. I really love teaching ninth-grade English.” He elaborated, stating, “…kids [come] in here as these unpolished rocks of eighth-graders and they walk out of here… somewhat polished semi-precious gems as high schoolers.” However, when the school had what Bushnell referred to as “thematic classes”, he taught a philosophy class. “I knew nothing about philosophy before I went into it, so I learned a ton,” he told us.
We also asked about how he came to be a teacher in the first place. He told us about a friend of his who “would always joke with me, she would say, like, ‘one day when you’re an English teacher,’ and I’d say, ‘Ha ha ha, I’m never going back to school, I’m not going to be an English teacher.’” However, in the summer of 2008, while working as a sales representative, he was involved in a car accident. “In the wake of that, I realized that I wasn’t very happy with my life, you know. The pursuit of money wasn’t enough for me… I kind of felt like I had almost died that day.” He elaborated further, “I finally decided, maybe my friend was right and it was time to go back to school, so I quit my job.” He worked a variety of teaching jobs before settling near Sanford with his wife, including at an outdoor school in New Hampshire and several substitute positions.
Bushnell also has two daughters, named Noa, aged eight, and Quinn, aged six. Outside of work, he spends time with them and his wife, but also plays guitar and piano. “My brain needs a break after a day of teaching, you know, so I like to do things with my hands,” he explained. He added, “Around nine, maybe 10, I’ll take an hour to myself, watch a show, read a book, play more music.”
Bushnell left us with a piece of advice. “I think that in life, it’s really important to understand that you are going to spend a lot of time doing whatever you do for a job,” he told us. He continued, saying, “People need to be honest with themselves and look at themselves in the mirror when they make those kinds of big decisions… You know, my whole life, when I was younger, people would always tell me I should be an English teacher. My English teacher, my mom and my friends, and I would always say no, like I told that story earlier.” He finished it off with, “Sometimes the people around you know you better than you know yourself. So it’s important to keep that in mind.”
