Chris Craddock, a recent UNC-Charlotte graduate, joined the Leesville staff this year.
After a year of virtual school, Leesville is welcoming many new faces into the building. Leesville hired almost fifteen new staff members have joined, including Craddock. He is a valuable addition to the history department.
“I’m so happy to be at Leesville and very grateful to be here,” said Craddock.
Craddock is no stranger to Leesville. He grew up around Raleigh, attending Heritage High School. He originally attended North Carolina State University after graduating but hit a road bump along the way. Rather than knocking out college in four straight years as traditionally laid out, he said he “needed a break.”
“I can relate to a lot of students on that front,” said Craddock.
After a while though, he “decided to roll up [his] sleeves, get back into it, and [UNC] Charlotte felt like the perfect fit and it ended up absolutely being so.”
He studied sociology at UNC-C. Sociology is a sect of history, allowing it to tie in closely with teaching history to students.
Kate Fehling connected him to Leesville pretty soon after he graduated college. “I was familiar with Leesville, and its great reputation. So when I heard there was an opening I was more than thrilled to even have the opportunity to interview. Then I got the job and it was like the best day of my life,” said Craddock.
Craddock has a passion for history, leading him to become a history teacher. “It’s always been the most interesting for me to learn.”
He is currently teaching American History 2 Honors and Civic Literacy Honors.
“I think there’s a lot of cool activities that you can do [in history], a lot of engagement with other students. And it’s so relevant — if you know history, then you can do so much with it,” said Craddock.
Additionally, working with students is what really inspires Craddock. He’s excited to dive in and help involve students. He wants to make students more excited to be at school, and he wants them to feel supported and cared for, even while furthering their education.
“I was a person who did not love high school, for many reasons. The social pressures in high school are so high, I struggled mentally in high school, to be transparent,” said Craddock.
Craddock understands what students are going through. From peer pressure to heavy workloads to family expectations, teachers (like parents) have been through it all before. High school can be difficult mentally and socially, and teachers are here to help.
“If I can help one person like some teachers helped me — that’s what drew me to the profession in the first place — that would be my dream, to be there through what can be a really challenging time.”
Craddock is excited to take on a new challenge this year, meet students, and become part of the community. If you see him in the hall, wave hello and give him a warm welcome to the Leesville Pride.
Hi! My name is Ellie and I am the editor in chief for The Mycenaean. I play soccer at NCFC and go to The Summit Church!