Mr. Steven Kuhn, an AP Government and Psychology teacher, has always held a passion for civic involvement, from being a volunteer firefighter in New York as a teenager to teaching social studies here at the school.

His family has a long history of working for their community- “My father was a firefighter, my grandpa was a firefighter, then it was kind of natural for me to join at sixteen,” Mr. Kuhn said. Despite no longer working as one, his experiences as a firefighter remain relevant to him as a teacher. He claims that although it may seem strange, the transition to teaching came naturally. “I’ve used [my experiences] to grow professionally,” he said, “and to grow my social ability and my ability to help people.”

This will be Mr. Kuhn’s second year teaching at the school, having taught in Fairfax County for two years prior to coming to Arlington. One major difference he sees between teaching at W-L and in Fairfax is the dedication students have towards their education. “I was very impressed from day one with the responsive feedback students gave me,” Mr. Kuhn said. “The academic focus in this school is second to none. The students are very involved with community efforts too. They don’t just show up to school for seven hours and then go home and sit.”

Mr. Kuhn returns that dedication by always being available to help students, an experience which not only made an impact on them, but also left a mark on Mr. Kuhn. He said, “It showed me that teachers are needed.”