Micheal
Quach
CONGRATULATIONS TO
HONORED NATIONAL TEACHING AWARD NOMINEE
Micheal
Quach
Townsend Harris High School
|
Flushing,
New York
Student Nomination Stories
Nominated by: Freddy Yu
Mr. Quach is a physics teacher that adamantly refuses to teach his subject merely through theorems and laws, but rather, insists on first building an intuitive foundation for otherwise abstract concepts. I was first taught physics by a different teacher at Townsend Harris, one whose teaching style consisted entirely of reading off decade-old presentations (with outdated material!) and printing out basic worksheets from online. When I first had the honor of sitting in on one of Mr. Quach's physics classes, I was blown away by how different his teaching style was. He loved incorporating real-world examples and experiments in his day-to-day teaching, whether that meant using spring-loaded carts to demonstrate the laws of momentum, or vacuum-sealed chambers to prove that sound cannot travel in space. Even when we got to more abstract topics within physics, like quantum physics or electricity & magnetism, Mr. Quach would use videos from YouTube to help us get a more visual understanding of the content we were studying. Most importantly, he was excited to teach. He had a sort of excitement that was contagious to everyone in the room. I remember this very clearly - every time he picked on a student to participate, he always had this sort of welcoming, easy-going smile that made students open up without fear of being wrong. And that is something I've almost never seen any other teacher in my life capable of doing. My true biggest regret in high school was that my introductory physics class wasn't taught by him. If you tell any Townsend Harris upperclassman that your physics class is being taught by Mr. Quach, you will automatically get this sort of stoic nod of approval and a "Nice" -- a response that roughly translates to: "You're so lucky". Outside of teaching physics, Mr. Quach commits much of his time to helping lead and manage several high-commitment STEM student organizations at Townsend Harris High School. As one of the coaches of our high school's competitive robotics team, Mr. Quach served as the voice of the students, even amidst a high-pressure environment where the needs of students are sometimes overlooked for the sake of the team's performance. When tensions run high and students get frustrated or overwhelmed, they almost always tend to turn to Mr. Quach for support. He has earned a reputation for empathy and candidness that such a competitive (and sometimes uncompromising) team desperately needs. Mr. Quach also leads the Science Olympiad organization, where he has worked tirelessly to ensure the organization's transition to becoming a more beginner-friendly environment. I was a student at Townsend Harris High School both before and after he joined the Science Olympiad, and I can wholeheartedly say that the team's transformation is like night and day - even as someone who wasn't a member. Although I wasn't in Science Olympiad, I was a programming leader and board member for the competitive robotics team during my senior year of high school, and to this day, I have never met a teacher more willing to sacrifice and compromise for the sake of his students. During robotics competitions, when my partner and I would stay up late at night to test our code and run simulations, Mr. Quach volunteered (with no expected compensation) to chaperone us, no matter how long our work would take. The analogy may seem silly, but it truly is reminiscent to me of leaders like Alexander the Great that insisted on fighting shoulder-to-shoulder alongside his soldiers, regardless of rank and title. Despite being authoritative and firm, Mr. Quach was always willing to get his hands dirty and work together with the rest of the team. I've seen for myself that this boosts morale and encourages students to work harder. There's nothing more humbling than seeing your teacher get machine grease smeared all over their hands and knees as he teaches a student how to use an Allen key properly, or how to mount a camera without stripping screws. During one particular robotics competition, I grew badly ill due to severe dehydration and stress, and Mr. Quach immediately dropped what he was doing to get me medical assistance. Even as our team continued to compete and the rest of the team's coaches continued their own work, Mr. Quach stayed by my side until I could be brought safely back to our team's hotel. I've seen him demonstrate this caring and nurturing side countless times now, and so have the rest of his students. We're proud to have him as part of our school's faculty, and I'm proud to nominate him for this award. Mr. Quach is an inspiration to us all and a driving force that simultaneously draws our community together and pushes us to be the best versions of ourselves. I carry with me the insights and advice he has imparted onto me, even though much time has passed and I am now a university student. There is no doubt in my mind that this is true for all of the people whose lives he has helped shape, in one way or another.
Nominated by: Haein Kang
Dear Honored Committee, My name is Haein Kang, and I have had the pleasure of having Mr.Quach as my teacher for my last two years in high school. Being a student has taught me that we can always recognize when a teacher truly cares about us, a sincerity that is as rare as it is impactful. For his students, Mr.Quach always went above and beyond, creating an environment both in and out of the classroom where every student felt supported and seen. The frequent words of affirmation that Mr.Quach offered during lessons and testing seasons served as a constant source of motivation and a reminder that someone out there believed in our potential. Mr.Quach is a kind of a teacher who buys tens of umbrellas just so his students won’t have to walk home in the rain; he is a kind of a teacher who brings an ice cream machine on a random Friday just to see his students smile and celebrate their hard work; he is a kind of a teacher who sends emails of encouragements during breaks; lastly, he is a kind of a teacher who sits through hours of conversation knowing that, sometimes, what the students need is to be heard and understood by someone that they trust, never once making them feel like a burden on his time. And it is not just his students that he looks out for. Mr.Quach was a constant source of support for the entire school community. He would volunteer to remain after school to participate in student-organized activities, even filling in as a dancer when a group was short a member. Looking back, I believe that my time in high school would have been vastly different without Mr.Quach’s mentorship. In a period filled with stress and uncertainty, Mr.Quach saw potential in me that I had not yet seen in myself, and his belief in me provided and continues to provide the internal confidence I need to navigate the newfound rigors of my college journey. I believe that every student deserves to have a teacher like Mr.Quach – a teacher who not only prioritizes academic excellence, but also deeply invests in the character and happiness of his students, leaving an impact that lasts long after graduation. And for these reasons, I cannot think of anyone more deserving of recognition than Mr.Quach, a teacher who truly changes lives, one student at a time.
To see more exceptional teacher nominees, visit The Honor Roll.
