This week’s Staff Spotlight features Mr. Holten. I had the opportunity to interview him, and I’m happy to share his thoughts, memories, and wisdom.
Mr. Holten told me that back during college, he found being in a cubicle all day to be boring and started looking towards the education field. He began working with students and realized that this was what he wanted to do in life. He jumped into the education field and has stuck with it since 1989.
Mr. Holten has no certain favorite thing about Fillmore Central. He cherishes everything here at Fillmore. He’s had other job offers at multiple places, but they just weren’t able to compete with Fillmore. Mr. Holten told me, “Every time I’ve thought about it, it’s like, we’ve got good families here, good students, and good support from the administration and school board. So, I’ve always felt like, why leave?”
One of Mr. Holten’s favorite high school memories is about a time when the boys in his chemistry class were passing gas after lunch. His teacher made the chemical equivalent the next day and was spreading it around class saying, “Today is my revenge, boys!”
Later on in the interview, I asked him when and where he’d go if he could go anywhere in history. His response was to go back during the Revolutionary War and the birth of America, to see the Constitution being written and to watch the debates during the construction of early America. He stated, “You think about all those guys and the importance of them in history.” We went on to talk about the limits of technology back then too. Mr. Holten said, “Think about George Washington for all the things he’s done [or] Abraham Lincoln and all the things he’s done. They never drove a car.”
His best advice to high school students is “even if it’s going to get you into trouble, just be honest.” He believes that honesty is the best policy and that honesty leads to better things in life.
His closing thoughts were to always be respectful. He told me to be respectful and good things would come. Mr. Holten added, “If you’re a good person and respectful in life, people will always respect you.” Finally, he told me that if anyone who has always been respectful needs a reference, 99% percent of the time he’ll say good things about you.
I enjoyed interviewing Mr. Holten and hearing his wise advice and stories. I believe that he’s one of the best people to go to for advice and help.
