ANN ARBOR SKYLINE HIGH SCHOOL

Ann Arbor Public Schools

2552 N. Maple Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48103

Cory McElmeel

Principal
734.994.6515
mcelmeel@aaps.k12.mi.us

June 10, 2016

To Whom It May Concern,
It is a privilege to write this letter of recommendation for Andy Peters, my student teaching
intern at Skyline High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan during the 2015-2016 academic year.
Andy is a diligent, thoughtful instructor who works to build strong relationships with
students through rigorous, relevant skills-based instruction that growth. Indeed, Andy is a
reflective practitioner who thinks carefully about teaching, learning, and assessment to
build lessons and units that help students maximize their potential.
Andy assisted with the instruction of my accelerated Humanities Literature course for
seniors, which is a university-level workshop where students are encouraged to build a
theory toolbox by reading critical theory from thinkers such as Althusser, Fiske, and
Sartre and applying it to a wide variety of texts through analytical writing. Because of the
difficulty of the content and the very high expectations of students enrolled in the course, it
can be a difficult environment for a new teacher. However, Andy was able to build strong
relationships with students by establishing himself as a trusted source of information.
Even when Andy wasnt teaching, he immersed himself in the texts and assignments,
stepping in to answer questions, have extended conversations with students about the
material or their reading and writing skills, and, eventually, grade assignments. When
Andy was teaching, his preparedness was an outstanding asset, as he would anticipate
student difficulties, devise useful scaffolding techniques to address those difficulties, and
provide targeted, growth-oriented feedback to move students to the next level of their
reading, writing, and thinking abilities. This was most evident when Andy was charged
with creating a prewriting document that connected Homers The Odyssey with Morrisons
Song of Solomon using Bakhtins Epic and Novel. Andy created an organized thinking
routine that permitted students to organize their prior knowledge and extend it by making
important connections that established critical relationships with all three texts.
Andy assumed primary instruction in Skylines English 12B and Creative Writing courses
where he designed units using backward planning, built scaffolded lessons, and provided
feedback to students. In these classes, Andy showed the ability to work with students with
different needs than those in Humanities. In English 12B, Andy guided students, many of
whom were in the bottom third of student achievement, through units that taught them
how to read more closely, write more analytically, and think more critically about key
issues related to social class as an introduction to college-level composition skills. Andy
saw to it that every student went through every step of the writing process before they left
high school, and the results were outstanding. Students not only showed growth from step

to step and draft to draft, but many students who hadnt had much success in English
courses previously found success under Andys tutelage. The same was true in Creative
Writing where Andy successfully implemented a writing groups model using peer
consultants from the Skyline Writing Center. Small groups of students, in consultation
with a tutor, would work to bless and press the work of their classmates. This method
ensured that students were writing for more authentic audiences and for reasons that went
beyond grades and teacher expectations. This led to students finding their voice and taking
more useful, thoughtful intellectual risks, which is a primary goal in Creative Writing.
Andy was also an asset in the Writing Center, where he assisted me in administering
Skylines successful peer tutoring program. Andy assisted me in designing training and
professional development for our 33 tutors, including several lessons on growth mindset
and the affective dimensions of peer tutoring that helped us ensure that students who
sought assistance and support were hearing process-oriented messaging that leveraged
effort, innovation, and resilience rather than outcome and product.
In his short time at Skyline, Andy has shown the ability to be a transformative educator,
and I believe that he will make a fantastic addition to your team.
If you have any additional questions about Andys accomplishments, do not hesitate to
contact me via electronic mail at austinj@a2schools.org or via telephone at (734) 994-6515.
Best Wishes,
Jeffrey Austin
English Instructor Writing Center Director
Skyline High School Ann Arbor, Michigan
Electronic Mail austinj@a2schools.org
Telephone (734) 994-6515