FORT OGLETHORPE, GA (WDEF) – David Tindell and Ryan Otting serve as co-teachers at Barnhardt Academy. Their coaching background helps them motivate students. They encourage perseverance, teamwork, and personal growth. All that earned this talented duo this week’s Golden Apple Award.
Barret Blankenship is the Principal at Barnhardt Academy.
He says, “Coach Tindell and Coach Otting are phenomenal teachers. they invest in our kids daily. The relationship as they seek to build and work with these kids individually to make sure that they are successful and everything that they do here, and the time spent with us. They’re just too great assets to our school system couldn’t be more proud to have them here with us.”
Coach Tindell explains, “I love kids. Love working with kids. I want to see them excel and all aspects. and wants to try to get them you know …out of high school be successful one life. I really wanted to be a coach. and coaching led to teaching and then the next thing you know, I’m 25 years into it. I’ve just got a strong passion for kids, and I guess you know that’s the reason why this was you know this path was chosen for me. and like I said I really do. I was a terrible teacher at first. and after coming and seeing doing this job I guess I feel like you know it’s one of those things that truly open my eyes and know now that, hey they’re kids they do need another chance, and we want them to know that we care about them.”
Coach Otting remembers, “Basically, the same thing. I wanted to be a coach, ended up becoming a teacher and here we are 20 years later, so.
When asked to describe himself Coach Otting says “Really nothing special. Just a guy who really loves the kids; really enjoy being with them. getting to know them and building relationships. Just helping them out.”
He continues, “You know they come up to us and like you said, they’ve had some troubles. We don’t really look at that here. Basically, a clean slate when they come here. Our goal is to manage behavior and get them academically on track and get them back to their homeschool. And that is really us in a nutshell. And that is what we do. They’re just kids. I mean, we say that each other all the time they’re just kids, and we’ve known each other for a long time and we have kind of a goofy relationship where you know we can be bad cop good cop, good cop, bad cop. and it really works out well and I think the kids enjoy the environment that were able to produce.”
