About Jerry

I have been teaching for over fifty-five years, and my teaching experience spans small to large schools, private to public schools, and early childhood to college-aged adults. During the last 30 years of teaching, I have taught all levels of Pre-AP and AP English and mentored students and teachers. I hold teacher certifications in the state of Texas for:

• Secondary English (Grades 06-12)
• Secondary English Language Arts (Grades 06-12)
• Secondary Speech Communications (Grades 06-12)
• Secondary Theatre Arts (Grades 06-12)
• All-Level Music (Grades PK-12)

Plus, I had the privilege of studying with Katinka Daniel and Sister Lorna Zemke to obtain my Kodaly Music Education Certification. This wide range of certifications has enhanced my ability to enrich the teaching of AP Literature and Composition.

While working with students and teachers, I have also served as an AP Literature Reader and Table Leader for the College Board scoring of the AP Literature and Composition Exam. I have worked with teachers throughout Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico, Florida, California, North Dakota, Minnesota, Georgia, Louisiana, and Alabama at AP conferences, summer institutes, and as a trainer for NMSI and Laying the Foundation. I remain in contact with outstanding colleagues throughout the United States to update my teaching skills and explore more ways to serve, engage, and support their efforts to reach their students.

My experience as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Dallas in Irving, Texas, and as a television producer, writer, and director for a weekly children’s program has increased my ability to create and adapt material for teachers and students not only for the “long haul” but also “on the fly.”

Since 1970, I have presented workshops on Humanities Approaches to Learning, Television Writing and Performance, and Arts for the Handicapped in Texas, Washington D. C., and Singapore. This is in addition to the wide range of locations listed previously involving AP English.

Since 2004, I have been privileged to conduct Advanced Placement Summer Institutes. I have been invited to present at:

• Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas
• James Madison High School, San Antonio, Texas
• Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, Texas
• University of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas
• University of Texas at Brownsville, Brownsville, Texas
• University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
• Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, Arkansas
• University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Rice University, Houston, Texas
• Texas A&M International University, Laredo, Texas
• University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas
• University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
• University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana
• Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama
• Texas Lutheran University, Seguin, Texas

Many of these schools and universities have invited me to return multiple times.