To celebrate the 15th Anniversary of Legacy Traditional Schools’ founding, we’re featuring stories of teachers and administrators who have been with us since the early years. This month, Legacy met with Queen Creek Physical Education Teacher Jerry Osborne, who talked about his career as an educator and the impact of an active lifestyle on student learning.
Mr. Osborne has inspired generations of Queen Creek students for over a decade, but his impact on young learners has been spread across forty years in education. And, while he’s a physical education teacher by trade and at heart, Osborne spent his fair share of time in classrooms teaching subjects such as world history, geography, English, and science.
Osborne was named 2018 Teacher of the Year by the Arizona Health & Physical Education Association. The award is presented annually to a small, select group of educators recognized for their service and contributions to their students, school, and profession. Osborne was also named Legacy’s “Teacher of the Year” for the 2018-19 school year – chosen by his peers and colleagues for his exemplary dedication to student success in and outside the classroom.
In addition to, and because of his outstanding role as a Physical Education teacher, Mr. Osborne was asked to serve as Legacy’s junior high Academic Intervention Group leader – a role tasked with supporting at-risk students on campus.
As far as his passion for physical education goes, Osborne says it’s important to model healthy living to his students, as his coaches and physical education teachers did for him in school.
“I would say you must be ‘all in’ every day if you want to be a good PE teacher. Creating lifelong learners passionate about fitness, healthy lifestyle choices, and sports competition through mutual respect is fundamental to anyone wishing to enter this educational field. It’s what I try to do every day.”