Passionate

From: cabrown4@uiuc.edu
Subject: Mr. Coate Memory
Date: January 17, 2007 4:39:59 PM CST



I remember one of the first days of freshmen biology class when someone sneezed, and another person said, "Bless you." Mr. Coate got this strange look on his face, as he often did with freshmen, and said something to the extent of, "We don't need to say "bless you" in this classroom. Let's all do one big "bless you" for the rest of the year." I didn’t think he could be any more intimidating than he already was, but at that point I realized I was wrong. As I continued on with some of his other classes in the following years, however, I realized he was using intimidation to "weed out" the students who were not willing to put forth the effort to learn about science.

I think Mr. Coate's main goal was to give us students the knowledge needed to better understand the world that we live in and show us the possibilities that science presents. He wanted us to succeed both inside and outside of the classroom, and he challenged us to reach our full potential. Throughout my high school career and still to this day, I would argue that Mr. Coate knows everything that has anything to do with science. Whenever I come across something scientifically confusing, I always think to myself, "If only Mr. Coate was here." Mr. Coate was extremely passionate about teaching science, and I think that is what made him such a wonderful and memorable teacher. I am lucky to have had the opportunity to learn from such a knowledgeable and caring person. Thank you, Mr. Coate.

Chad Brown