This year, we are excited to welcome a new member to the Beth Tfiloh faculty, Mr. Francis. With a background in both local and international classrooms, he brings a thoughtful, student-centered approach to teaching chemistry and physics.
Mr. Francis was born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago, a twin-island country in the southern Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela. Early on in high school, science was his weakest subject. But thanks to a teacher who gave him the confidence to keep learning, he discovered that science was a great way to feed his curiosity. Initially, he wanted to become a pediatrician or work in pediatric sciences, but after tutoring some of his fellow students in college, Mr Francis discovered a passion for teaching. “Over time, even professors who I hadn’t worked with directly started to notice me. They were impressed by how well the students I tutored were doing in their classes.” he said.
Before going into teaching full-time, he worked at Olive Garden and at Direct TV. Later, he taught for a while in Trinidad and Tobago, Baltimore City, and at the Jemicy School. It was his friend, Mr. Trudell, whom he had worked and coached girls’ soccer with at Jemicy, that encouraged him to come to Beth Tfiloh.
He mentioned that “Since joining Beth Tfiloh, my experience has been, overall, very positive.” One of the first things that stood out to him was how genuinely friendly and welcoming the community is. Looking ahead, he’s excited for our school events like the Weiner basketball tournament and the upcoming plays, as well as fun surprise labs later into the year. He’s especially eager to revisit lessons, experiments, and concepts that were difficult for students in the beginning of the year and see how their understanding of each topic has grown.
Mr. Francis wants his students to leave the year knowing they are capable of learning and growing. “In a time when science is often misunderstood in society, I hope my students will see that science isn’t as hard or intimidating as it might seem at first,” he commented. Most of all, Mr. Francis feels his students deserve a space to think for themselves and to understand how to approach the world with a scientific mindset. His goal is not just to teach science, but to “inspire curiosity, confidence, and independent thought” that lasts well beyond the school year.