Beloved by many, FHS teacher Moris Clark has been teaching for 26 years, 16 of which have been at FHS. This year, he is teaching Government/Economy, Government/Economy for English learners and US History. In the past, he has taught a wide range of subjects, from eighth-grade history to AP Government. Being a social science teacher has been his dream since his teenage years, which he has worked very hard towards achieving.
“It’s interesting, I always knew I was gonna be a history teacher and a high school history teacher ever since I was in 10th grade in high school,” Clark said. “I’m one of the very few people who knew what they wanted to do when they were growing up and actually get to do it.”
Although he always had his mind set on this goal, Clark was not always on track to achieving it. He struggled in high school since he had immense trouble focusing in the classroom.
“I was a horrible student in high school,” Clark said. “I graduated with a 1.63 GPA.”
His lack of academic ability, he said, was largely due to his struggles with ADHD. Unfortunately, there was very little awareness about the condition when he was growing up.
“I don’t even know when [ADHD] became recognized as something that falls under the IDEA, but it’s affected me my whole life,” Clark said.
While he enjoyed learning, he did not like having to be in school. Since the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act had not been passed yet, his learning disability was not accommodated. Despite his efforts towards learning to work with it, his college experience was very challenging.
“It took me five years to get my [associates degree] at DeAnza to transfer to San Jose State because I had to learn how to be a student,” Clark said. “I didn’t have the capacity.”
His prolonged experience helped him relate to students going through rough times. He has motivated students to take charge of their lives and pursue academic proficiency. Diego Lemus, one of Clark’s students this year, is inspired by Clark’s teaching.
“I didn’t think I could do anything, you know, I couldn’t amount to anything,” Lemus said. “But he changed my mind on all of that and pushed me to do my stuff right.”
FHS senior Batoul Mortada, another one of Clark’s current students, appreciates his unique teaching style.
“He cares a lot about us, and in the ways that many teachers don’t,” Mortada said. “If we have personal problems, he will help us through them and that’s what makes him different than most teachers.”
Another large part of Clark’s identity is his passion for racing Iron Man distances. These consist of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile marathon. His brother suggested they participate in one, but he was initially hesitant to commit to something so difficult. Despite his brother’s efforts, he ended up not following through the first time around.
“Then all of a sudden, about five months later, [my brother] knocks on my door Super Bowl Sunday, [and] says, ‘Give me your credit card, we’re signing up for an Ironman,’” Clark said. “That was 2014, and I went from couch to Iron Man in 20 weeks.”
Clark’s story is one to take inspiration from because, despite his adolescent struggles, he managed to achieve his dreams and inspire the students he teaches. He is able to relate to many students’ struggles and has a good understanding of how to help them achieve their potential.
“I will be the first one to support anybody,” Clark said. “But I’m not going to allow people or students to become a victim of what’s going on in their lives.”
