What sets The Donoho School apart is our faculty. These individuals provide the living curriculum for Donoho students in and out of the classroom. Each week we will feature a member of the faculty and his or her story. We hope you will enjoy getting to know our faculty members throughout the school year and will stop by each week to read the latest Donoho Story!
Donoho Stories: Mrs. Melissa Smyly
What do you teach at The Donoho School?
I teach upper school English and middle school history.
What do you love about The Donoho School?
What I love most about Donoho is the energy in the classroom. Students come to school because they want to learn. I also love the community. Even though we have students and faculty from many different cities and towns, everyone supports each other like we live in the same neighborhood.
Why do you like teaching at The Donoho School? What motivated you to become a teacher at The Donoho School?I attended the Donoho School. I had such amazing teachers, people that cared so much about me personally. I wanted to be that same person for my students. I like teaching here because everyone wears many hats. You are not just the English teacher. You are a coach, sponsor, mentor, advisor, and many other things.
What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
I have so much respect for what our students do both inside and outside the classroom. I like to recognize all of the talents of my students in all areas of achievement.
What sets Donoho students apart from students in other schools?
Donoho is a college preparatory school and our teachers maintain a rigorous academic environment in their classrooms. Having worked in other schools, teachers often lower their level of expectations to fit their students. Our students rise to the level of expectations academically while balancing extra-curricular activities in athletics and fine arts. This is what sets our students apart from students in other schools.
The Donoho School tagline is “Discover the Difference.” How do you accomplish this in your role at Donoho?
I push my students to excel. I want them to only be satisfied with the best.
What do you want your students to gain from having known you?
I want to teach my students to not only be exceptional in the classroom, but to also be exceptional human beings. I hope they learn in my classroom that character is as important as intelligence. It is important to always have a smiling face and a lending hand.
Mrs. Smyly received her B.A. in Secondary Language Arts Education from Auburn University and her M.A. in Library Media from the University of West Alabama. She is married to Stephen Smyly. They have two children – Emily Anne (fifth grader) and Jake (third grader) at The Donoho School. They are expecting their third child in May. Mrs. Smyly coaches basketball and spends her summers as the program director at Camp Mac in Munford.
