Contentment in Your Community
“Contentment is the foundation of true happiness. It is accepting and embracing the present moment as it is.”
—Jeremiah Say
There are some educators destined to mentor our youth, catching the teaching bug prior to becoming adults. Childhood experiences, including a love for learning, drawing on the influence of one or many teachers, or just a feeling of comfort and contentment in a school setting, pave the way for a career in our schools. Because of these experiences, there are some in our profession who were confident in wanting to become a teacher long before graduating from high school. This month’s Harper Unsung Hero, Adam Ries, has fond childhood school memories, with many of his teachers having a positive influence on him, but he didn’t realize that he wanted to be a teacher until midway through his college career. “I was undeclared for my first few years of college,” Adam recalled. “I thought I might want to do something related to business, but was still undecided. I spent my first two years completing prerequisite classes, taking some history classes, some criminal justice classes, and a German class. At the end of my sophomore year, I had to declare a major, so after reflecting, I decided on education. As a teenager, I had done some coaching of elementary-aged kids for wrestling. I enjoyed being a mentor for these kids, so I decided to pursue teaching.”
Adam’s childhood was typical of a child growing up in a small town in the 1980s and 1990s. “I was born in Kalamazoo in 1977, the youngest of two children of Judy and Daniel Ries,” Adam explained. “My older brother Bradley and I grew up in Allegan and lived in a suburban neighborhood full of kids. There was a vacant lot near our house where all the kids interacted together playing sports, making forts, exploring in the woods, and making ramps for our bikes.” Interacting with his friends every day as they created their own entertainment consumed much of Adam’s time as a child, but he was also involved in many organized activities. “I participated in scouting for much of my childhood,” he said. “I was also involved in athletics and theatre. My dad videotaped every one of my games starting when I was in middle school and continuing when I was in high school.”
A family business created many positive memories for Adam, while allowing him to enjoy his first experience working and making money. “My mom’s family operated a fruit farm near Dowagiac, and eventually they opened a restaurant specializing in donuts and cider,” Adam noted. “I worked there during my summers.”
Adam started his school career, attending his neighborhood elementary school. “I went to Dawson Elementary,” Adam said. “It was three blocks from my house, so I was able to walk to and from school every day. I went there starting in Kindergarten all the way through 6th grade.” Adam enjoyed school. In some ways, it was like an extended family for him. “I had a very positive school experience all around,” he added. “My teachers were fantastic, and the community was great. I attended a gifted and talented program before the school day began at the elementary level. I was involved in writing contests and spelling bees while at Dawson Elementary.”
One of Michigan’s biggest and most iconic county fairs took place a stone’s throw away from Adam’s house. “The Allegan County Fair has always occurred during one of the first weeks of the school year,” Adam noted. “The fairgrounds were a few blocks away from my house. During fair week, many of our school’s students would go directly from school to the fair. I enjoyed watching some of the fair’s biggest events through the years, including professional wrestler Sergeant Slaughter and the demolition derby.”
Athletics emerged as a big part of Adam’s life at a young age and continued through middle school and high school. His coaches and teammates were a huge part of the extended family that made up his community. “By the time I got to middle school, I narrowed sports down to three: football, wrestling, and track,” Adam recalled. “Before this, I had played tennis, soccer, and baseball. I had very good relationships with my coaches. Most of them were also teachers in the district. Many of these coaches were also family friends. I still talk to some of these coaches today. They were mentors beyond the classroom and playing field.” The role that Adam’s dad filled for Allegan Community School’s athletics added to the feel of family that Adam sensed while growing up. “Because my dad was the videographer for our football team,” Adam explained, “the coaches would come over to our house after the games to look at film.”
Athletics played a significant role in his childhood journey, providing friendships and opportunities to grow and develop. He also found success through sports. “I was a captain for our football team and voted All-Conference my junior and senior years,” Adam said. “The team aspect of football was something that I enjoyed. I was an All-State wrestler my senior year. I was decent in all sports but was probably best at wrestling. I participated in the pole vault in track and was All-County for this event for my last two years.”
Adam participated in other extracurricular activities outside of athletics, including drama and the National Honor Society. He also stayed busy when not in school. “I was in a garage band in high school playing alternative rock,” Adam noted. “Eventually, we were the warm-up band for the varsity high school basketball games. We also played at a local coffee place and at the talent show. I played bass guitar. We continued playing for a few years after high school. We recorded and made an album in the band room a few years after graduating from high school.”
Adam worked at his family’s farm and restaurant near Dowagiac but earned money in other ways as well. “When I was in high school, I would mow yards to make money. I worked at a Christmas tree farm during the summers, trimming Christmas trees, and also worked at a sub shop on weekends,” he explained. “The summer before going to college, I worked in a local factory. I worked many hours that summer, and the factory was very hot.”
Adam graduated from Allegan High School in 1996 and started at MSU in the fall. “I enjoyed the college experience. It was a huge change, but I made new friends and was very social,” Adam noted. “I had season tickets for football and hockey and attended several basketball games. I worked for DTN in college, a rental property company, working in the office and showing apartments. I earned my BA in education in 2001, majoring in history and minoring in Spanish.”
Adam searched for a teaching position immediately upon finishing at MSU, but the job market was not favorable. “After graduating from MSU, I had a few job interviews, but did not receive any job offers,” he said. “I stayed in Lansing the next year and worked at Best Buy in Okemos. I also substitute taught some in the Lansing area.” Adam would get his first teaching opportunity in the fall of 2003, making a few stops along the way before coming to Harper Creek. “The next year, I was hired to teach history and Spanish for Decatur Public Schools in 2003,” Adam explained. “It was a fill-in for a teacher; he was called to duty as a Reserve Marine. I was there for one year. It was a great first assignment. I enjoyed teaching and immersed myself in the extended school community by attending all of the sports teams' competitions.”
The teacher Adam was filling in for at Decatur returned the following year, and Adam searched again for a teaching job. “I was offered a job in Climax the next year, in 2004, teaching middle school and high school Spanish and history,” Adam said. “I coached junior high track, junior high wrestling, high school cross-country, and helped with high school wrestling. I really enjoyed coaching track the most.” Adam found himself hunting for a teaching position again in 2007, when layoffs at Climax left him without a job. In the fall of 2007, he accepted a part-time job with Portage Middle School teaching 8th grade Spanish and coaching middle school football and wrestling. Although it wasn’t ideal, teaching part-time, he gained more experience. Fortunately, he was able to find a full-time teaching job the next year. “In the fall of 2008, I started working at Bellevue, teaching both middle school and high school Spanish, history, and geography,” Adam noted. “I also taught Bronco Broadcast Media and coached varsity and junior high wrestling while I was there. I was also a class advisor. I had been living in Portage and moved to Battle Creek when I started teaching at Bellevue.”
Teaching for Bellevue provided Adam with the most stability he had experienced up to that point as an independent adult, and he remained there for more than ten years. “I met my wife Brittany while teaching at Bellevue,” said Adam. “She was coaching volleyball at the time and was later hired as an elementary teacher. Brittany and I were married in 2011.” Brittany went on to add a special education endorsement to her teaching certificate and eventually moved on from Bellevue, making the transition from general education to special education. “In 2018, Brittany was offered a job teaching special education for Harper Creek Middle School,” Adam added. “After Brittany came to Harper Creek, I also wanted to come to Harper Creek.” Adam continued teaching for Bellevue for another three years, waiting for an opportunity to come to Harper Creek. “In 2021, Harper Creek posted a job for 7th-grade Social Studies,” explained Adam. “I applied, interviewed, and was offered the job, which I accepted. I taught this for three years and have taught 8th-grade U.S. History for the past two years. This year I am teaching 8th-grade US History and 7th-grade Ancient Civilizations.”
Adam has extended his role with Harper Creek beyond the classroom as well, coaching middle school track for the past five years and also event managing the middle school wrestling meets. The experience that Adam has gained in all the districts he has taught for has been valuable, but it is here at Harper Creek where he has found a permanent home. He shared his thoughts on his Harper Creek experience. “Teaching at Harper Creek feels more like the district and community that I grew up in than any district I have worked in. The staff that I work with is phenomenal. We have an upbeat, positive environment. It feels like we all share the same goal in wanting what is best for kids.” Adam is thankful for the opportunity to have a positive impact on our youth and doesn’t take the responsibility of his job lightly. “I want to bring something to the table as a coach and teacher, and I feel that I do this,” he shared. “I don’t want to just exist. For me personally, I never want to feel that I have let anyone down. I like to be prepared and organized as a teacher.”
Adam remains committed to being there for his students and athletes but also maintains an active, busy life outside of school. “Brittany and I have two daughters: Ira, who is a 6th grader at the middle school, and Hattie, who is in 3rd grade at Beadle Lake,” Adam said. “Outside of school, we like to travel. We also like to explore new restaurants. Brittany and our kids are obsessed with Disney. I am constantly working around the yard. I also like to bike a lot and just keep in shape. Ira and Hattie are involved in theater and other activities, so this keeps all of us busy.”
Adam’s goals help to guide what he does each day in the classroom and also how he lives his life day to day. “I feel it is important to be present in your interactions with others,” he explained. “Being attentive to my everyday interactions and the phase of life I am currently in is something that I strive for.”