The library is a well known, safe and open space in Dee-Mack High School. The bright windows and shelves filled with books creates a calming atmosphere. Many students come in here to chat with other students, sit, read, or collaborate with others. Mr. McCoy likes a positive environment so he fills the space with things that many students love and admire. He has plants, puzzles, books and many desks for group or individual settings. Mr. McCoy deeply cares about his students; he truly believes that students and academics come first before anything else. I interviewed Mr. McCoy and here is what he had to say…
What’s your favorite color?
Mr. McCoy: That’s a difficult question. My favorite color has always been blue. So if you noticed I always have had very squinty eyes. So blue would always pop out for me when I looked at things. My favorite sports team is Cincinnati. My favorite football team is the San Francisco 49ers. With Dee-Mack we’ve got a lot of red running through us. So I’ve kind of transitioned to red, but really blue is my favorite.
What’s your favorite movie?
Mr. McCoy: That’s also a tough one. So a lot of times my movie depends on my mood. Like, if I’m feeling you know, a little down, lovey dovey or whatever. I’ll do a rom-com, like, Princess Bride, a solid throw back movie. I’m also a big fan of Goodwill Hunting.
What is your classroom essential? What is something you feel like you have to have in your room?
Mr. McCoy: I always have to have respect. Like, as you’ve seen me, I’m pretty laid back, obviously. And I talk to everybody like I want to be talked to. And that’s why even with some, we’ll say some of the roughest students, I usually get along with everyone. And so when the respect isn’t shown or reciprocated, then that’s when I really take it personally and it kind of hurts my feelings more than anything, which I know you’ve seen some of the few instances in my 22 years.
What’s your favorite snack?
Mr. McCoy: Ice cream, without a doubt. It’s my weakness.
How long have you been a librarian?
Mr. McCoy: So, this is now my 23rd year overall. So I had 3 years at Hershire High School up by Kankakee, which coincidentally, the year I went there was the year after Mr. Holmgren left. So, it was funny. We always had a couple mutual friends. And I went from there to Ridgeview, and I was there for 8 years, and this is my 10th year here at Dee-Mack. So when I was at Ridgeview, I taught English and special ed reading. It was junior high reading one-on-one for special needs students. And I also did vocational math. It was like life skills. So, over there I did a little bit of everything. They’re smaller than us, so to make the schedule work, a lot of times I had to pick up extra sections and stuff. So I was all over the place there. At Ridgeview it was more like K through 5th library because that’s when I would have my library time with them. It was a lot of fun. I had a good time with it. So 22 years total, on my way to my 23rd.
Do you like being a librarian more or would you rather do any of those specific jobs?
Mr. McCoy: I love teaching English. I really like literature. I originally started college back in the day as an English teacher. I was in English education, and I bombed my 1st clinical. I couldn’t talk well in front of people. I was totally nervous. And now it doesn’t bother me. I get up to talk about anything. So that’s why I did library gigs.
If you weren’t a teacher, what would you do?
Mr. McCoy: Well, as you know, I already have a second job. But I would love to be a writer. I like to write.
Like journalism, like what kind of writing?
Mr. McCoy: Oh, probably both. I actually started off at ball state. I was a dual major in English and journalism. But the journalism field was changing a lot. It was when it was transitioning from Mike Prince, to the internet stuff. So, that field was dying out, but I always wanted to do sports writing and stuff like that.
So you said you have another job. So what do you do outside of school other than that other job?
Mr. McCoy: I’m a bartender for my 2nd job and I do that once or twice a week. So some good extra money is amazing. Also it’s just everything with my kids. I’ve got a 5th grader and an 8th grader that I bring here. And right now, it’s crazy. We’re juggling a full schedule of baseball, track season, and scholastic bowl. And my little one wants to play soccer. So we have 4 activities right now, we’re juggling every day, along with my wife and I both having 2nd jobs.
Did your parents like reading?
Mr. McCoy: My mom was a reader, but I didn’t have the greatest home life growing up. But I found out, I had a couple good teachers along the way. They taught me that education was the way out. Not to generalize, there’s nothing wrong with going into the trades or anything. Getting an education was always like the way out. You always hear about the cycle of poverty and stuff like that. We didn’t have much growing up. And so I always knew not to get things, but just to better myself through ways of education. If you don’t like your situation, education is the way out of it.
Who inspires you?
Mr. McCoy: I think a lot about this, you guys, the students, probably. This actually involves you a little bit. So one of my highlights of the year was when you started reading. I’m going to start getting a little emotional here. But anyways you know, when you said you needed a book to read, and then we got you to read a couple of the Riley Sager books was the best. That’s really inspiring to me because that’s now something you’ll do for the rest of your life. It helps you, as you get older and you have too much going on, just kind of escape. That’s the best way to check out and give yourself a break. And so you becoming a reader this year, along with all the other students, is so inspiring to me to know that they’re still hoping for humanity’s future.
How old were you when you started reading?
Mr. McCoy: I was always lucky once again. I just picked it up and I could do it really well. But I really started getting into it when I graduated high school. And then I took two years off from college as an undergrad. That’s when I just read for fun and relaxation. I was like, oh my gosh. So that’s when I figured out what I was going to do.
And do you like paperback books better, or do you like Kindles online?
Mr. McCoy: As I’ve gotten older, I got a Kindle for at night. So, yeah, it’s got to be a Kindle now.
What’s something you wish your students knew?
Mr. McCoy: Well, we’ve talked a lot about reading. I wish they wouldn’t just dismiss ideas so quickly, or dismiss stuff so quickly. A lot of kids will just walk in, they act like they’re looking for a book to read. And I would be like, hey, what are you looking for? And they’ll say, I don’t like reading. You don’t know that. You just haven’t found a book. But also taking care of themselves, their body, and nutrition. Everything I wish I would have known way earlier. Everything that life experience has given me, I wish they knew also. Just being a better person and treating people the right way, especially before they either hit bottom or feel like it’s too late.
What were you like as a student?
Mr. McCoy: I was good. Things were different back then. And it’s not like I’m not like a decrepit old man or anything. As a student, I just took tests, I never did homework. I should have been a straight A student. I always found I was resistant to homework, but since then I learned why you do homework and stuff like that. And especially since I do work a second job and I’ve worked hard over the years. And showing up is a skill. One of the best abilities is availability. So doing your homework and doing things that you don’t necessarily feel like you need to do is a skill. And I never learned. I always had perfect attendance in school, but I was an okay student. I never was a troublemaker. I just kind of blended in.
Mr. McCoy has formed friendships with his fellow teachers, but with few he has forged a bond with. Mrs. Uner, Mr. Davis, and Mr. Mac are three teachers who share a close relationship with Mr. McCoy, they are more than fellow teachers but people Mr. McCoy would consider close friends. When each teacher was asked how he had affected their time working here each teacher had a similar response. Mrs. Uner said, “He has made everyday happier, sillier, and brighter.”
Mr. Davis stated he has great advice and he likes to share his experiences for the benefit of others. Mr. Mac has been working with him for twenty years and has lots to say about him but the most important was, “he is a great guy. He is always a really good ear and he’s very knowledgeable, kind, and intelligent as he is also very well read.” An ICC student who is in the library more often than not, Sovann Bun, comments about the serenity of the library, “Coming in here everyday is a relief because I can relax, it is a very calming space where I can come chill and do my schoolwork in quiet.”
