DID YOU KNOW?
Tacoma’s story spans more than two centuries from the time Captain George Vancouver anchored off Tacoma’s north shore in 1792.
In 1870, Tacoma’s natural deep-water port became an attraction that the Northern Pacific Railroad couldn’t pass up, when it made Tacoma a stop on its transcontinental line.
Old Tacoma and New Tacoma merged in 1884 and incorporated as Tacoma. By 1890, the population reached 36,000 people.
Tacoma is home to the Port of Tacoma, the seventh-largest container port in the United States, and it is within 20 miles of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and 36 miles of the city of Seattle.
Howard Wouters,
Upper School Math
Howard Wouters teaches calculus and pre-calculus in the Upper School. He hopes his students remember him as a trustworthy man of principle and that they graduate with a keen sense of the importance of integrity. “I love to work with students one-on-one,” he says. “The amount that we can accomplish in a short period of time is substantial.”
“Because these kids are so valuable and because I feel it is so important, my favorite project each and every year is to establish a trusting relationship with each of my students built on mutual respect and encouragement. One morning a student came into my classroom during the third period. I had already taught him during the first period, but he asked if he could talk to me. I told him I would like to talk, but I had a lot to cover during this class and I asked if he could wait until the end of the period. He said he would wait and took a seat in the back of the room. When class was over and the other students left, I went over and asked ‘What’s on your mind?’ His reply was indeed a shock. He said, ‘This morning when I was in your first period class, you looked tired to me. Is there anything I can do to help you?’ That’s that kind of relationship you can establish when trust is the goal.”
In 1999, after unusually intense lobbying by students, the CWA Parents Association presented Wouters with the Inspirational Faculty Award.
Wouters graduated from Western Washington University. After teaching for 25 years at Curtis High School in University Place, he joined the Charles Wright faculty in 1993. Wouters says he enjoys the freedom here to do what he thinks is the best thing for a class or student at any given time and have the time to prepare to do it.
In addition to teaching, he coaches golf. He is active in the community serving meals at the Tacoma Rescue Mission, assisting in disaster relief efforts, leading several groups at his church, and directing an annual golf tournament. He owns and operates a lighting company. He enjoys vacationing, golfing, fishing, volunteer work, and spending time with family and friends.
“Because these kids are so valuable and because I feel it is so important, my favorite project each and every year is to establish a trusting relationship with each of my students built on mutual respect and encouragement. One morning a student came into my classroom during the third period. I had already taught him during the first period, but he asked if he could talk to me. I told him I would like to talk, but I had a lot to cover during this class and I asked if he could wait until the end of the period. He said he would wait and took a seat in the back of the room. When class was over and the other students left, I went over and asked ‘What’s on your mind?’ His reply was indeed a shock. He said, ‘This morning when I was in your first period class, you looked tired to me. Is there anything I can do to help you?’ That’s that kind of relationship you can establish when trust is the goal.”
In 1999, after unusually intense lobbying by students, the CWA Parents Association presented Wouters with the Inspirational Faculty Award.
Wouters graduated from Western Washington University. After teaching for 25 years at Curtis High School in University Place, he joined the Charles Wright faculty in 1993. Wouters says he enjoys the freedom here to do what he thinks is the best thing for a class or student at any given time and have the time to prepare to do it.
In addition to teaching, he coaches golf. He is active in the community serving meals at the Tacoma Rescue Mission, assisting in disaster relief efforts, leading several groups at his church, and directing an annual golf tournament. He owns and operates a lighting company. He enjoys vacationing, golfing, fishing, volunteer work, and spending time with family and friends.
