The graduating class of 2020 has voted Mr. Aaron King, Government, and AP Government teacher, as their favorite teacher.

King felt that it was an honor to be awarded the title of favorite teacher.

“It’s a cool validation because, to me, a very important thing is to build strong relationships with the students,” King said.

While he enjoys teaching, something that he values even greater is his family – his wife, two daughters, and a son on the way.

“My family is super important to me. While I’m here, I’m all in and about these relationships and my work, and having [students] learn about government, learn about life,” King said. “But then, it does afford a lot of time off. That’s where I can be all in with my family, and that’s even more important to me. That’s a really nice perk of teaching. I wouldn’t take another job that paid more if it just robbed me of time, so that time is more valuable to me,” King said.

Having strong relationships with his students is one thing that King loves about teaching. After they graduate, King and his wife, Mauri, will enjoy time with his past students with activities such as boxing, going out to lunch, and even celebrations.

“I like to keep up with them afterward, particularly if they go to A&M. There are a lot of students at A&M right now and my wife and I will travel down there and we’ll take them out for lunch. A certain student or two, we’ve gotten close with,” King said.

He has even been able to attend two different students’ weddings and another student’s citizenship oath ceremony.

“When they leave here, most of them are now in the adult realm, so it kind of opens the door for a different level of relationship that I enjoy. I think for me the biggest thing are those relationships,” King said.

King enlisted in the Army Reserves in 2004. He went on to earn his Bachelor’s of Science in Political Science from Texas A&M University and served in the Army for eight years before beginning his teaching career in Houston in 2012. This year is his fifth year teaching for Judson High School. However, he did not always have an idea for what he wanted to do.

“I went to college and had three different majors. I didn’t graduate with three majors. It was by the time I reached the rank of sergeant in the Army, that’s when you kind of start having more leadership responsibilities, and you have troops that are under your command. I started being more responsible for training troops and leading and teaching some classes and skills. It was that experience that made me decide, ‘I really like this. I like that aspect of training and teaching.’ That’s when I decided I wanted to teach. I was in my early twenties when I decided that,” King said.

At the end of the day, King is glad that he is able to make a difference in his students’ lives.

“One of the best things I like about teaching is kind of that mentorship-type aspect of personal relationship and inspiration more than just merely academic education. I think something like [being the class of 2020’s favorite teacher] validates that, I think it’s a sign that the students see me as more than just somebody they learn government information from,” King said. “I’d rather them learn real-life life skills and how to have relationships and being loving and sacrificial. I think maybe that this is something that worked, maybe I made a difference, so I think that’s pretty cool.”

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