Tommy Peters has spent his entire 31-year teaching career in the Woodward School district. In the first ten years, he taught TechEd at Woodward Middle School and for the last 21 years, he has taught multiple tech classes at Woodward High School. He says that he enjoys teaching classes that help him pass on what he loves to do.

“I have always enjoyed working with my hands, building things, and figuring out how things work,” he said. “I have always felt like that was an important skill to teach to others. While I do not remember a specific thing that made me want to become an educator, it has always just felt natural.”

While he may not remember exactly what made him want to become a teacher, he knows that there were people in his life that had an impact on that decision.

“Mr. Huntsinger at Western Oklahoma College was my drafting and industrial arts teacher who encouraged me to pursue an education degree,” Peters said. “I also had many teachers and coaches over the years that made an impact on my life and ultimately my career path. While in college at Southwestern Oklahoma State University, I met former Woodward Public Schools teachers Frank Harrington and Darrell Jones. Both Frank and Darrell encouraged me to complete my student teaching at Woodward and I was hired at Woodward Middle School the next school year.”

There are things that Peters has learned over his years of teaching and he says that these are important things to remember, no matter your age or profession.

“The two of the most important lessons I have been taught are ones that I still try to do today,” he said. “The first one is to treat everyone with respect, “And the second is you have to work hard at anything you want to be successful at.”

When he is not teaching, Tommy enjoys spending time with his wife Chanda, and his son Luke.

He also likes to hunt, fish, be outdoors, and watch his son’s sporting events.