Life can take unexpected turns, as history teacher Rebecca Newman knows well. Newman has been teaching at FCHS for 20 years, but few are aware that she originally studied to be a lawyer. These days, she teaches PVCC Government, General History/Government, and Sociology.
“It was a matter of choosing Government over English and what I liked more. I teach mostly Government now, with a little bit of Sociology,” she said.
Newman grew up in Eatontown, New Jersey, a town in Central Jersey on the coast by Asbury Park and the Monmouth Ranch. She graduated from Monmouth High School and then attended Virginia Tech, majoring in English and minoring in political science. Next, she attended the University of Virginia where she acquired a law degree, before moving on to Old Dominion University where she got a Masters in Education.
“I went to law school to please my parents,” said Newman, who added, “[but] I teach history and English because it’s a passion and a calling.”
Newman’s first year at Fluvanna in 2005 was when the middle school was still the high school. “I had this teeny-tiny room at the old high school. It was so hot. The heat was always running,” she said. While at the old high school, she was a special education teacher. In fact, she and English teacher Sherry Esch were the first teachers to do a collaborative teaching model at the old high school.
“I was naive. I thought kids would do as they were told to,” Newman said, describing her first year teaching.
Newman has been teaching at FCHS since 2005. “In some school systems, teachers are given very strict guidelines on what, when, and how to teach. In Fluvanna, I am a trusted professional and given the freedom to be creative,” she said. She noted that in her Sociology, for example, she has modified the game of Monopoly to teach about social status in the United States. “Students begin with unequal amounts of money and property in the game we call ‘Sociopoly’. For my government classes, students participate in mock Supreme Court sessions and learn about the concepts of precedent and stare decisis. I look forward each day to interacting with students. I am stimulated by the pure act of teaching—without the trappings like grading, discipline and duties,” she said.
Newman has been married since 1996 and has two kids: daughter Gray, 26, and son Graham, 24, both of whom graduated from Fluvanna. Newman also likes hiking, and names Angel’s Landing in Zion National Park in southwestern Utah as one of her favorites. Her other hobbies include reading, puzzles, and diamond art.
