BUCYRUS, OH (CRAWFORD COUNTY NOW)—“Just seeing those kids and seeing what they can do makes it worth it every time,” said Brandon Buck of his busiest days as a teacher.
A 20-year veteran with 17 years full-time at Wynford, Buck was pleasantly surprised with his latest recognition.
“I actually had a couple kids that came in and said that they had nominated me,” Buck said. “They had just seen a post from WQEL on social media: ‘Nominate a teacher.’ Our superintendent said there was at least one alumnus that also had written in, and that’s great.”
“I got to see a lot of the comments online,” Buck continued, “and I saw a couple students that I haven’t seen for a while. I taught them in junior high before I moved to the high school.
One of the comments was, ‘I hope he is still wearing the shoes.’ I have these black and white Doc Martens that they still remember, and I just thought, ‘That’s funny that they remember something like that.’”
After teaching 7th & 8th grade math, Buck moved into algebra and geometry. Now, he’s added a unique advanced quantitative reasoning class to his schedule.
“It works as an Algebra 2 equivalent. [Students] can take more of a project-based math class … they still have to figure things out, but some of the content isn’t as hard. They’re still using all of the high-processing skills.
This was really a nice thing for us to have for our students, and I think we were one of the first in the county to do it … a lot of the other county schools are joining in. So, it’s a pretty cool program.”
Buck’s approach to math instruction embraces advances in technology and philosophies while keeping a traditional perspective.
“Geometry is geometry,” he said. “You’re still dealing with shapes and triangles and circles … algebra is still the same; we’re still solving XYZ equations.
I can remember getting my first graphing calculator in high school, and now [everything] is on their Chromebooks. Students have a free website, and they just go and do everything that our giant calculators did 20 years ago.”
“I know people give Common Core a bad name,” Buck continued, “but it’s really just a way of asking questions … a little bit deeper thinking than just, ‘Okay, solve this equation.”
In addition to teaching, Buck serves as assistant director for marching band and technical director for theatre productions in the school auditorium.
“Music’s always been a big part of my life,” Buck explained, “so that’s kind of my release. I still play in a concert band up in Findlay. Every Monday night, I drive up there and I play in a community group.
I’ve played for church, I’ve played for a friends’ weddings and things like that, so music’s very important to me.”
“For drama, I’m busy all year,” Buck continued. “Probably about 15 years ago, I wrote a grant to the Timken Foundation, and we bought some new lights.
Sometimes those are underrepresented areas. Sports get a lot of the spotlight traditionally. So, if we can put some spotlight on those band kids and choir kids and drama kids, that’s a huge part of my life.
Most of the sound stuff that was done in the auditorium was done by my dad and I. My dad’s a graduate of Wynford. Actually, both my parents, mom and dad, are graduates. It’s an important place for them, and my uncles and cousins attended here. It means a lot to our family.”
As the graduation season approaches, many young teachers will be embarking on their professional journeys. For these new educators, Buck offers some sage advice:
“You’re going to have to put in some work, but the rewards are always worth it … build those relationships. [Your] relationships with administration, secretaries, custodians.
Here at Wynford, we have an unbelievable staff. The principals and administration the custodians, the secretaries, the teachers, the aides, it’s such a wonderful team. So, if you can build those relationships, that helps you on that side of things.”
“Build those relationships with the students,” Buck concluded. “They’re not always going to like what you’re doing. They’re not always going to see the purpose: ‘When am I ever going to use this in life?’ If I had a dollar for every time I heard this, I could retire, but that’s the big thing. If you can build that relationship, your kids will work for you.”
Congratulations to Brandon Buck, our Teacher of the Month for March 2025, and best wishes for the rest of the school year.
We hope you’ll find occasion to break out those Doc Martens.
Brandon Buck from Wynford is our Lewis Family McDonald’s Teacher of the Month for March, this month we are taking nominations from the Crestline Exempted Village School District. You can nominate a teacher by clicking here.
