ANTHONY GATEWOOD

Hello Brave Nation, my name is Anthony Gatewood.  I am a teacher of English and a proud member of the Navajo Nation.  I am of the “By the Water’s Edge” clan on my mother’s side, and “Mexican” on my father’s side.  I lived in Fort Defiance for much of my life and come from a family of educators.  I’ve taught English throughout the state of Arizona for thirty-four years. 

I graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in Extended English and belong to several established organizations for the study of English including the National Council for Teachers of English, Promethean ELA Education, National Education Association, Modern Language Association, Language, Reading, and Culture from the University of Arizona, and most recently--AVID or the “Advancement via Individual Determination” pre-college preparation program. 

I am an avid reader and have attended the annual Tucson Festival of Books during the spring and fall seasons.  I enjoy taking my family, my wife of thirty-seven years and my sons, Ian and Josh, to poetry readings, bookstores, and lectures offered in and around the Tucson area.  I enjoy working on cars, mostly my own, but have also helped my colleagues and friends with small repairs to their vehicles. 

I’ve taught writing at Pima Community College in the Upward Bound Program for 10 years and have continued my education to earn a master’s in Reading, Language, and Culture at the University of Arizona.  I am very proud of my college and have several “honors” and “Dean’s List” certificates from the Modern Languages Department from the U of A.  I graduated from the Education College in the top 10 percent of my graduating class of 300. 

As a teacher, colleague, husband, and father I value and appreciate being a life-long learner.  My family has always supported earning advanced degrees and encouraged us to give back to our people when we are done with school.  As a member of the Navajo Nation, I’ve done that and now am focusing on our San Carlos Apache people.  I know our youth are our most cherished and valuable part of our culture, and our children’s continued education beyond high school in this ever-changing world is a must.  I say, “Go Braves, Go Freshmen!”