For the past 18 years, Rodney Allen has lit up the English department with world literature, enriching the lives of every student that has taken Seminar English II at Reynolds with Allen. Since Allen has been teaching, his students have loved having him guide them through ancient literature.

   “I really like the humor Mr. Allen brings to the classroom.” said sophomore Ross Ogburn. “It makes it really fun and easy to learn.”

   Even after nearly two decades of teaching at Reynolds, Allen has always managed to keep students active and entertained even when the inspiration isn’t there.

   “Often the grading gets hard and stressful,” said Allen. “But the student’s feedback and their will to learn keeps me going.”

   For students like Ogburn, in the long run, the challenges they face in Allen’s classroom are not only tough but valuable. They read a collection of books that provoke deep thought and classic storytelling such as The Iliad and Les Miserables.

   “I really like the reading in his class,” said Ogburn. “But keeping a reader’s journal is a lot of work.”

   Along with his rigorous course load, students also like to get to know Mr. Allen as a friend as well as a teacher.

   “Mr. Allen is a really good person and a great role model,” added Ogburn.

   Allen is constantly looking out for his students as well as the school at large. From helping out a student who is eager to learn, to announcing Reynolds basketball games, Allen never stops. After all this time, Allen confesses he still has things to learn from both his students and his colleagues.

  “I am fortunate to have really good colleagues here at Reynolds,” said Allen. “I am constantly learning from them and I really enjoy it.”

   Every student that has had Mr. Allen as a teacher knows that he is an incredible man as well as an exceptional teacher, and lucky for us, it does not look like he is going anywhere anytime soon.