Mr. Kyle Botkin is a Texan with family roots in Houston and a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M. His background has always oriented around education, though it has developed over time. His undergraduate study in the agricultural department of Texas A&M focused on parks and recreation management and youth outdoor programming.
After graduation, Mr. Botkin spent most of his 20's running a Christian backpacking camp in Colorado. The program taught team building and mentored students. For example, he explains, "One talk we might give at the end of a trip is drawing an analogy from the physical work of climbing a mountain to the spiritual work of drawing near to God."
Eventually, Mr. Botkin realized that if he transitioned from being a camp leader to a classroom teacher, he could continue to have a positive impact on young peoples' lives, but for more time out of the year. Mr. Botkin says, "The best part of teaching is meeting new students every year and making a positive impact on their lives. While I love math in its own right, I also view it as a powerful way to mentor students."
Because he had always enjoyed and excelled at math, Mr. Botkin decided that this would be his discipline of choice. In his late 20's he earned a master's from Harvard in math education. He and his wife Christina then moved back to Houston to teach and be close to family.
Since then, he has taught at both private and public schools. With all this experience, he feels especially drawn to the mission and vision of JHCA. "One of the things that drew me to the Academy was that many things I believe about teaching—but hadn't yet put into words—are stated on the school website."
Besides math, Mr. Botkin enjoys linguistics and history. He tries to intertwine these subjects where appropriate. For example, he will explain Greek and Latin etymologies in a geometry lesson to create a historical understand and context of the topic. This multi-faceted enthusiasm for learning and making connections helps to make him a dynamic teacher. He says, "Math is stereotypically a 'dull' subject, but I hope that my passion for the subject rubs off on the students!"
Mr. and Mrs. Botkin are happy to be able to raise their five children in the Rocky Mountain West. In particular, they are looking forward to backpacking, something of an area of expertise for Mr. Botkin. In Colorado he summited almost one hundred peaks, and even guided Governor Rick Perry on a strenuous backcountry excursion.
When not teaching or helping to take care of his children, Mr. Botkin enjoys reading, sports, and spending time on the water.