The work of plays

Ledford’s students spend long hours rehearsing after school, and this work ethic spills over to their core subjects.

By Frances Haman-Prewitt

Allan Ledford decided to become a teacher because he loved high school.

And now, he’s passed that on. His students love high school, too—more than any other students I’ve ever seen. As I sat in Ledford’s musical theatre class at Center for Creative Arts, I watched the faces of his students, a class of boys majoring in musical theatre. They are engaged. They are passionate. They can’t wait for summers to end so they can return to school. I found myself wishing that every child could love school as much as Allan Ledford’s students do.

Granted, his students are having fun. In one class segment, the whole group created a crowded street scene of shopping in New York City, while in another, the students got to roller-blade in class. But they also work incredibly hard; they spend long hours rehearsing after school and perfecting their performances, and this work ethic spills over to their core subjects.

“The discipline CCA students learn from performing helps in their academic work,” explains Principal Debbie Smith. “They know that they have to get it done, and they have to get it right.” A glance at CCA’s academic scores backs this up: Some 93 percent of CCA students graduate; 100 percent passed the 2009 Gateway English exam, with 93 percent scoring “advanced”; and the lowest scores for the school are on the Algebra Gateway, where 89 percent passed the test, and “only” 66 percent scored “advanced.”

Allan Ledford’s dedication is clear. When I spoke with him, he was rehearsing for a Student Showcase and for a February school production of Mame, and the Choo Choo Kids were in the midst of their busy performance calendar. Rehearsals of one production or another last until 7 p.m. almost every night. Ledford admits to getting tired sometimes and says he doesn’t always love school quite as much as he used to. What he does love, though, is helping create passion in his students. And that, perhaps, is what he does best.

Visit Allan Ledford’s excellent classroom at PEFChattanooga.org/ExcellentTeachers—and leave comments about your own experience with an excellent teacher in your life.