Teacher Profile Series: LRHS' Thomas Pulliam

Thomas Pulliam is more than just a high school math teacher.

While he is a Lind-Ritzville High School math teacher, he's also the superintendent of the Benge School District, a teacher in the online portion of the Western Aerospace Scholars program, a teacher during the summer residency portion of the WAS program and the secretary for the Benge Volunteer Fire Department.

This may sound like a lot of work, but Pulliam says it's simpler than it sounds.

"I just stay organized," said Pulliam, who hopes he can pass that trait on to his students. "They actually have me teaching study skills next year as a supplementary class [to help students] figure out how to stay organized. That's the big thing. I have a plan for the day. I know what I have to get done two weeks from now."

Pulliam is a resident of Benge. He travels to Ritzville on school days to teach at the high school. He says Adams County has always been his home.

"My family has been here, not in Benge but in Adams County, since 1885," Pulliam said.

Pulliam started teaching as a math teacher in 2008 in Lind. He originally got his certificate to teach grades K-8, but now he's certified for middle school and high school.

"It was interesting teaching elementary kids because it was about getting them off to a good start," Pulliam said. "And now I get them toward the end, so to speak, and it's about making sure they have what it takes to jump off into the real world."

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Pulliam likes teaching math because he says it teaches students to be problem solvers.

"I like problem solving," Pulliam said. "I tell my students that I don't want them to be self-selecting themselves out of jobs they want to do. I don't want them saying, 'Oh I can't do math so I can't do that job.'"

Even if students struggle with math early on, Pulliam says it's never too late to reach them.

"I actually did better at math when I was in college than in high school," Pulliam said. "Sometimes people can be late to the party but we've got to figure out how to help get them on board and not get discouraged about it."

Pulliam also says he finds his work with WAS rewarding.

WAS is a two-phase learning program put on by the Museum of Flight in Seattle in partnership with the University of Washington. The program accepts Washington, Oregon and Montana students.

Phase one is an online series of nine classes designed by UW and NASA. Each year, Pulliam is assigned a group of students to guide through the program. This year, one such student was Lind-Ritzville High School junior Jessica Heater.

"It's an amazing experience for the kids," Pulliam said. "At Boeing we get the factory floor tour. There's only two ways to get this tour. You either have to be in WAS, or you have to buy an airplane ... Often times what I see is if kids are persistent and see [the program] through to the end, it will be worth it their senior year. And that's already started for Jessica."

Pulliam has taught in WAS for seven years.