“I hope to leave a legacy of good scientific education, and the love of exploration of the world around us,” said new science teacher Daniel Strang, “I hope my students remember that learning is fun.”

Strang began his career at Higginsville, and then moved to Savannah after two years. He finally settled on Ray-Pec to be closer to his daughter Avery. Of the three, Strang is enjoying Ray-Pec the most.

“I don’t know a whole lot about the other districts [Belton, Lee’s Summit, etc.] but I feel like the student population here is the hardest working and highest achieving of them,” said Strang, “Along with a bigger school comes more extracurriculars, and better competition.”

One thing that Strang said was enjoyable in a smaller school’s setting, though, is how much closer teachers are with each other and their students.

“I wish I could interact with the other teachers more, because aside from our discussions, I do not really talk a whole lot with the teachers in the south building,” said Strang, “It is much easier to communicate with everyone at a small school than it is a bigger school like Ray-Pec.”

Students and staff at Ray-Pec are warmly welcoming Strang to the district, who appreciates it immensely.

“I am very thankful, the folks I work with now are so kind, hardworking, and helpful. There is no one in the science department that hasn’t been kind,” said Strang.

Strang’s goal is to not only teach students well, but to also make them feel appreciated.

“I really enjoy being a teacher, and being able to listen to and help solve the biggest problems of students in and out of the classroom,” said Strang, “I want them to know that my room is a safe place for them to go to when they feel overwhelmed by everything else.”

There is one other perk to teaching that Strang has regarded as the most rewarding.

“I love knowing that I have the ability to positively impact students and their lives,” said Strang, “Lots of teachers go into it (and I don’t use this word often because it has a negative connotation) as idealistic, and want to have an impact on society as an educator, and to have a positive influence on as many people as possible. Teaching is that job. A lot of teachers are romantics, they think they can achieve greatness by positively influencing people who then carry out that greatness.”

If a student sees Strang in the hallways, they should be sure to welcome him to the high school, and they should allow him to positively influence them so that they can carry out his greatness.