When art and humanities teacher Josh Spencer walks into his dimly-lit classroom at Montgomery County High School, students can’t wait to plunk down around his cluttered metal desk. They flock around him to shoot the breeze about everything from meditation, soccer, Dollywood and the importance of being positive, to heavier topics like suicide, pregnancy and drug addiction.
It’s like Josh, 34, is a modern-day Father Goose. He captivates his “kids” in his busy corner teaching them about graphic design, the history of hieroglyphics, the importance of creating a good political advertisement and perhaps more importantly, life.
“I’ve done painting, ceramics, music,” says Josh, a self-trained painter, graphic artist and musician. “But the thing I’ve only really been good at doing is connecting with people. Clicking with kids is my art.”
Growing up in Mt. Sterling, Josh gravitated toward punk rock, skating and rebellion.
“When I heard the Ramones, my life changed. It went a lot faster,” he explains.
He eventually found peace in his creativity.
“I’ve always been fascinated by creators,” he adds. “Just creating is something we have lost and need. If you’ve got that itch, you’ve got to scratch it.”
With time, Josh realized that his strength was in helping kids like himself.
“An art teacher’s job is much more than teaching art,” he says. “You have to be there for the gay kids, the transgender kids, the delinquent kids who are about to drop out. That’s the artist’s role. You need an older dude that gets you.”
Josh has realized that his medium as an artist is people. Every day when he goes to work, he tries to make each of his students feel valued in some way.
“What I run is a shop class,” he says. “It’s loose, organic. It’s like being in a chamber where there’s a fan and there’s hundred dollar bills flying all around and you’re just grabbing them. My classroom is a lot of creating, a lot of conversation, a lot of personality building, a lot of crowd maintenance, and you have to grab each opportunity that you get to have a learning moment.”
His purpose is simple.
“What I teach is how to be a good person,” Josh says, “and how not to be racist or homophobic or hateful. I teach how not to hate. If you pick up graphic design, that’s fine. But if you leave your class and have a heart full of hate, I haven’t done my job.”
