Sociology Teacher Reflects on Life at Central

Sociology and TOK teacher Casey Denton is an extraordinary teacher at Central. She has a strong relationship with many of her students because she is set on giving all of them as much support and encouragement as possible.

“I have found that students are more willing to engage, behave and take redirection when they feel a teacher cares about them and them and respects their innate dignity as a human being,” Denton said

Denton graduated from Central in 2006. She says coming back as a teacher was always a plan for her, it was just a matter of when.

“When I started teaching, I was only 21 years old, so I made the decision to start at the middle school level,” Denton said. She taught language arts for three years and loved it. When the opportunity to teach social studies at Central presented itself in 2013, she immediately applied for the position. She is also a varsity assistant coach for girls’ soccer, an academic coach and the teacher sponsor for the HOPE club. 

“The students are what teaching is all about,” Denton said. “They are the lifeline of the building, the energy and joy. But it can be frustrating and at times devastating to work hard to connect and help some students only to hit a wall and lose the chance to best prepare for the next steps in their journey

Denton was inspired to become a teacher to impact young people in a positive way. “My grandmother and father were educators, so education was always an integral part of my life,” Denton said.

The Central spirit is strong in Denton’s home. Denton’s husband is a second-generation Central graduate and she hopes her son Teddy will be a third-generation legacy.

“I feel so proud and privileged to be connected to such a long-standing tradition of excellence, diversity and philanthropy,” Denton said. “Central is all about the past, present and future and I love being able to say I am part of Central’s past, present and future.”