Brandon Twp.- After more than 35 years in the same district it’s not uncommon for a family’s second generation to have the same teacher.
But when a family’s third generation enroll for that same teacher then it’s rather notable.
‘This student came in and said I signed his grandmother’s yearbook,? laughed Harold Cloutier middle school computer science teacher. ‘I thought, oh boy, guess it’s been a long time.?
While still unshaken by the longevity of his tenure and the sometimes spirited attitude of thousands of adolescents, Harold Cloutier, 59, a Brandon Middle School teacher for more than three decades announced last week he will retire at the end of the school year.
‘When school starts in September it always seems like a long time until June, but when you’re doing what you love the school year goes fast,? he said. I could teach until I got tired. That day is yet to come.?
A Grand Haven native, Cloutier earned an associate’s degree from Muskegon Community College and a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University in 1967. After teaching stints in Spring Lake and Clintondale he started teaching at Brandon Middle School in 1969, the first year of the middle school concept for the district.
‘My wife Linda worked at the (Brandon) high school library until we had children,? said Cloutier. ‘We came to Brandon from Clintondale where we both found jobs in a school.?
When Cloutier first started teaching at the middle school, many students came to class in bib-overalls and had been up early before class doing chores on their family farm.
‘The community was rural and agricultural based,? he said. ‘Students had a lot more responsibility at home.?
While Cloutier has taught thousands of students over the years’he’s learned from students too, specifically during the early 1970s when a sixth grade student helped acquaint him with computers.
‘During the summer a student went to a computer camp at Central Michigan University, soon after three computers were donated to the school. I agreed to sponsor the after school class if the student would teach me to use them.?
During the years Cloutier continued to teach and study computer science adding to his math, science and social studies background. He also assisted in the design of the middle school science rooms and served as president of the Brandon Education Association.
‘The students keep me young,? he said. ‘I work hard to see no student fails. My pay is when students learn the things I’m teaching and I see the progress.?
Cloutier and his wife, who owned Fancy Fins and Feathers pet shop in Waterford are retiring to Elizabethton, Tenn. to be near family.