Warren Lee Culpepper
Every inspirational champion has it. Every genuine leader has it, too. Raw talent has less to do with it because the edge comes from confidence nurtured by two crucial factors: first, our knowing that we have prepared painstakingly for a challenge — physically and mentally; and second, our learning that a competent, respected mentor believes in us. Coddling words of a merely appointed authority figure – the kind who often avoids his obligation to confront our faults – cannot produce this trademark self-assurance.
I think of how much time I invested wrestling, working hard to be good, but never believing that I could be the best. At an Ohio high school, I had one year with a talented mentor, Coach King. The end of my junior year, he announced at an all sports banquet that he thought I was one of the better wrestlers at my weight class that year, despite my failure to achieve every wrestler’s goal to be a champion. His simple comment elevated my self-expectations for the future. His words motivated me to believe in myself and to work harder for him. Under Coach King’s leadership, I started to appreciate the meaning and to develop the qualities of the edge.
However, I moved to Virginia my senior year. Aside from my older brother (whom I saw occasionally) and my father (who was battling depression) I would not encounter another mentor who captured my admiration and confidence until my third year in college. His name was Ken Haselrig, and he was a two-time NCAA all-American. He placed second in the 1987 NCAA Wrestling Championships. Ken was a quiet leader, but he led by example. Just my wrestling against him in practice contributed to my confidence. I knew competing against someone better than I was made me tougher.
Two years later, I met my next gifted mentor, Kevin Dresser. Coach Dresser is now Head Wrestling Coach at Virginia Tech. Competing for the University of Iowa, Kevin won the NCAA Wrestling Championships in 1986. When Kevin said he believed in me, I wanted to prove him right. His words, like Coach King’s, not only gave me confidence but also lifted my own self-expectations. Eventually, he told me something after I had finished competing that I wish he had told me earlier. He explained how most people set their goals too low because they think they’re being realistic. Kevin thinks we should always set our goals incredibly high. He said, “If we’re always truly pursuing being the best, well, we may or may not get there, but we will definitely accomplish more than if we set our expectations lower.” His point was simple — by setting our goals incredibly high, we are more likely to achieve our true potential.
Joining the Marine Corps helped me hone my own leadership and mentoring skills, as well as elevated my expectations of others and myself. Then when I started teaching high school English, I brought this mentality with me. I shared Kevin’s way of thinking with my students. I tried to model the example of setting high goals by trying to be the best teacher. I wanted to be the best for them but also for me. I gauged myself against the English teacher I respected most, Connie Cutler. Connie taught honors English, and she had earned her rock-star-teacher status and many teacher-of-the-year awards. Initially, I thought Connie had it easy teaching honors classes, but as I matured, I began to appreciate how difficult outworking Connie would be because her challenges were just different than mine. Consistently challenging overachievers and already-eager students tested Connie, while inspiring the often-disinterested learners challenged me. My respect for Connie and my wanting to surpass her made me a better teacher for my students. They often complained, “Mr. Culpepper, your class is harder than AP English.” That was my goal – to prepare my students to compete against the best.
I imposed that competitive mentality on my students. Coach Dresser believed that we’re only as good as our competition and that in order to be the best we needed to outwork the best. When our rivals are asleep, we need to be training. I fostered that philosophy in my classroom. Each of my classes was a team. I pushed them to be better than the other English classes at school. Furthermore, each Team Culpepper class wanted to be better than the other Team Culpepper classes. The philosophy often made class more enjoyable, but more importantly, it made it effective. Overall, the students pushed each other as they bought into the concept that if each of them were trying to be the best, they all would be better. They often told me the thing they respected about my class was that “no matter what grade you get, you know you had earned it.” One of my student’s from Texas recently wrote, “When I learned that I had an 85% in your class, I was really proud of myself because I had worked incredibly hard for that grade. It was the first time I actually felt like I was above average. Shanel.”
Regrettably, our nation’s government school system (public schools) fails to foster this competitive mentality in students. Political correctness and the liberal academic climate try to eliminate competition all together. I always hear about level playing fields and other nonsense when it comes to education. I don’t believe the world has ever seen a level playing field. Competition hinges on preparation and mentoring. It pushes us to better ourselves, consequently compelling those who wish to compete with us to improve, as well. When teachers don’t compete against each other, their students have less hope to develop the edge. Unlike the Marines, who strive to be the best at what they do because death awaits them if they’re not, teachers need competition because complacency awaits them if they lack consequences to get better. With grueling preparation, stiff competition, and the esteemed approval of competent mentors, the public’s confidence in our education system could be restored.
Unfortunately, public education approaches preparing students by rallying behind that politically-correct drivel like “leveling the playing field” and “making life fair” – unhealthy fantasies that only encourage whiners to continue complaining and waiting for others to solve problems they could solve themselves. How is it possible to level a playing field without crippling someone else? If no one can be better than anyone else, where is the incentive to improve? Even worse, the government’s monopoly on education guarantees competition doesn’t exist. And like all monopolies – we pay a lot for an inferior quality. Finally, as far as admirable mentors, experience tells me that education’s list is just far too short.
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Warren Lee Culpepper is currently writing his first book, Alone and Unafraid: One Marine’s Counterattack Inside the Walls of Public Education. Additionally, he is a contributing columnist for The Publius’ Forum, The North Carolina Conservative, and The Hinzsight Report.
A 1991 graduate of Virginia Tech, Culpepper majored in both English and Communication. He was also a varsity wrestler. He attended the United States Marine Corps Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Virginia, and received his commission in 1993. He served four years on active duty before settling in southern California to begin his teaching career. He taught high school English in both California and Texas. He recently moved to eastern North Carolina with his wife, Heather, and their bulldog, Shrek.
Lee can be reached at drcoolpepper@yahoo.com.
Visit Lee’s blog at http://wlculpepper.townhall.com/