We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Stephen Bain is joining our faculty next year!
Dr. Bain earned a B.A. in Humanities and Biblical Studies from Point University and Master's degrees in Humanities and Philosophy from the University of Dallas. In addition, he completed a Ph.D. in Humanities and Philosophy from Faulkner University.
He has taught at Coastal Alabama Community College, Auburn University at Montgomery, the University of West Georgia, and Atlanta Metropolitan State College. Most recently, he has taught at Scottsdale Prep, one of our sister Great Hearts Academies.
Dr. Bain will teach Humane Letters at North Phoenix next year.
Our students prepared a few questions for Dr. Bain:
When did you decide to become a teacher and why?
I suppose that I was first intrigued by the idea when I was in my senior year of high school. I had several very good teachers that year, and I was impressed by the way that they had impacted me, and I thought it would be a good profession to be able to impact others. This idea grew when I was in college, where I was able to do some teaching myself as a TA. It was there that I discovered that I loved teaching. Teaching allows me to make a living doing one of my favorite things: encountering the great ideas of history and civilization, study them, and then share and discuss those ideas with others as they encounter them for the first time.
What do you look for as signs of positive engagement?
Students are positively engaged in a topic when they are asking questions about it. It shows interest and a desire to discover more about a particular topic. I also see positive engagement when students disagree with a thinker, a writer, or one of their ideas. This shows me that students have not simply encountered an idea, or expressed a like or dislike of it, but are analyzing and passing judgment on a topic, and comparing it to their own ideas and, perhaps, altering their own views in light of those new ideas.
What interests do you have that might support an extracurricular club?
I have always been very fond of games, whether board games, card games, or collectible card games. It might be enjoyable to have a club based on a love of games where those with similar interests might come together and share in some fun “analog” pastimes, as it were.
If you could have dinner with anyone from history or literature, who would it be?
I think that I would like to have dinner with G. K. Chesterton. I would imagine that the dinner conversation would be magnificent, not only because of his scholarship, which I greatly admire, but also because of his wit, his humor, his profound sense of wonder, and the unique manner in which he engages with ideas.
Welcome to North Phoenix Prep, Dr. Bain!