Student, coach, parent and teacher, Steven Wool has impacted ETHS in many ways. Wool currently teaches law, Civics and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID). Wool himself graduated from ETHS in 1985, then went on to major in History. However, he did not always envision himself as a teacher.

“When I first started off, I wanted to go into the FBI,” said Wool. “My dad was a judge and my mom was a teacher, and they were huge influences on me.”

Eventually though, Wool found his love for working with kids.

“I started doing summer camp work during my freshman year of college and then I did a summer job, where I coached middle schoolers and fifth graders at Mason Park,” said Wool. “I got to connect with kids and saw the joy of what it was like to impact people.” 

During his time at ETHS, Wool developed and wrote the curriculum for the American Legal Systems course. In Wool’s eyes, the learning environment has significantly changed since he started teaching.

“The most recent challenge has been to be creative with lesson plans and not have students just Google something and use ChatGPT,” said Wool.

One of the most rewarding parts of Wool’s career has been watching students grow over time. He even coached his own children and saw them perform in school shows.

“My oldest daughter was in YAMO, and she participated in basketball,” said Wool. “My son was a football player and an artist, and my younger daughter was a highly-recruited basketball player.”  

As Wool enters retirement, he looks forward to spending time with his kids, all of whom graduated from ETHS.

Wool believes that showing an interest in students’ lives outside of academics is key.

“Get to know your students on a personal level,” said Wool. “What is it that they like to do outside of your classroom? Show up for it.”