Jim Kelly challenges students to break boundaries and embrace bold, unconventional leadership approaches in the classroom and beyond.
Kelly, a firm believer in experiential education, is one of the most tenured teachers at Carlmont High School, with over 20 years of experience.
“At the beginning of the year, I thought it was a little weird just because it wasn’t a normal class or something that I would expect from something that I learned in school,” said Ethan Lee, an Associated Student Body (ASB) member. “Throughout the year, I learned to enjoy it and enjoy his teaching style.”
Kelly, who Carlmont initially hired to teach typing and computer applications, believes that Carlmont’s ASB and leadership programs have significantly changed since he first arrived on campus.
“When I first got here, they’d be doing these activities, and they were totally disorganized,” Kelly said. “Nobody wanted to be in ASB.”
Since then, Kelly has expanded the ASB and freshman leadership programs to include more than 60 students, many of whom speak highly of his classes and teaching approach.
“It is definitely much more engaging than some of my other classes,” Lee said.
Although it may seem intimidating for some, Kelly believes that getting the most out of his classes requires stepping out of your comfort zone and meeting new people.
“That’s something about Mr. Kelly. When you buy into the activities, he makes them feel so real,” Lee said. “You have to able to experience what he meant when he was teaching, which helped me understand the message he was trying to give us.”
Kelly’s unique approach to running ASB and the Freshman Leadership class lets students work at their best while also letting them do their work on their terms.
“He’s hands-off in a way, which I like,” said Liam Gulsen, an ASB member.
In addition to running various leadership activities, Kelly also gives informative lessons on what great leaders look like and tells students how to use that information in the real world.
“His lectures are very informative, very applicable to a lot of things, even now, or even outside of high school,” Gulsen said.
Overall, Kelly hopes that the relationships he develops with students will encourage them to try something new.
“You got to develop a relationship of trust and respect in order to let that happen,” Kelly said. “That’s something I’m super, super proud of here.”
