Running into the building, as a new freshman, I remember the nerves taking over my body, and the first thought that took over my head was, I am lost... I ran into a teacher I didn’t know, but soon, I would become close to him.

Mr. Hoch was the first new face I ran into on my first day as a freshman. I told him I was lost, and that I wasn’t sure where to go. I told him where I was supposed to be headed, and then he showed me the way. On the way to class I felt the excitement start to overcome my mind.

The next day I walked into my health class, I looked towards the front of the class and realized I knew that face--it was Mr. Hoch! I immediately went up to the front of the class to greet him, and then I found my seat. He did not remember my name at first, which was alright due to the fact that we had only talked once before. Just sitting in class I felt my nerves start to increase again. Many new faces around that I have never seen before, and a teacher I have never had before.

He made class interesting. He was a first year teacher, and also a recent Arrowhead grad which was a relief knowing he knew what he was talking about. Sometimes running into new faces, you never know if you can trust them at first or not. Not knowing much about him, I could tell right away he was into sports.

One of my favorite things he did was not even class related. Every Friday, to start off class, he had a funny video for us to watch--sometimes it was “Tommy Boy”, or “Key and Peele” or even YouTube videos. I don’t think this was a bad use of class time given we only did it for a few minutes on a Friday morning in class. I believe it was good because it gave us a little break, and let us lay back a little bit.

I had Mr. Hoch for health and a satellite study hall.  As I stated before, health was the main class. In the study hall is where he helped me with homework and we got to know each other. Overall, I struggled but Mr. Hoch was able to find a way to help me. I have always had a problem transitioning into different schools. When second semester came around, I still struggled so that is why I was placed in study hall with him. It ended up helping me succeed more, but not enough. I did finish better than first semester.

Mr. Hoch was into sports. He’s a short, 5’9” white kid from Hartland, Wisconsin, yet he was an amazing athlete. He was a Division 3 basketball player at Carroll College (now known as Carroll University) and he was a star player. Many of us think that he could have made it to the NBA. He was also a great baseball player. A star athlete at Arrowhead, he impressed many people.

Mr. Hoch left a lasting impression on me. His constant peppiness and jokes helped keep me motivated. I would like to thank him for the help he gave me second semester which helped me succeed more than I had the prior semester. He did not have a very large impact on my life, but it was enough to make an impact and keep me motivated.