Staff Member of the Month: Sherry Esch

November’s Staff Member of the Month is Sherry Esch, an English teacher who has taught at Fluvanna for 13 years.

Esch graduated from Longwood College, a year before it became a university, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a concentration in Secondary Education, and Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from UVA.

When asked what interests her the most about English, Esch said, “It may be silly, but what interests me the most is research. It is one of the most concrete subjects we get to cover and for my seniors, an area they will most definitely use in their future.”

Esch said her favorite part of teaching is making connections. “I feel blessed to be able to know my students a bit better through their writing.” she said.

After starting her teaching career at Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, Esch moved to Orange County High School the next year, before finally settling in at FCHS in her third year of teaching. She’s been here ever since.

Throughout her years of teaching, Esch has experienced many interesting things, but said one especially surprising thing was that she didn’t originally get hired in her initial meeting at FCHS. During that interview, Esch was asked where she saw herself in five years, and responded with “Not in the classroom.”

This led to her teaching at Orange County High School, where she met fellow FCHS English teacher Victoria Zavadsky. Esch believes that it was fate that brought them together, as this meeting allowed her to grow and head to Fluvanna as a more seasoned teacher who was committed to the classroom.

Esch is married to her husband, Matthew, and has three children; Madeline, Mallory, and Joshua.