Exploring “all that you can do with an education degree”
The way Eric Veal Jr. leads his classroom is the same way he leads the student body—as a teacher.
Education was a family value instilled in Eric Veal Jr. by his mother and grandmother, both teachers. He has always known he wanted to follow in their footsteps, but it was another teacher—the one who taught his Constitution class in the seventh grade—who ignited Veal’s passion for political science. As a dual degree major at the University of Michigan, he’s been able to pursue both fields at once.
“The dual degree is 150 credits,” explains Veal. “You pick a home unit between LSA and the Marsal School, and from there I just kind of went forward and ran with the opportunity. I took a whole bunch of classes. I took my last poli sci class my junior year, and then focused on my education courses.”
Veal is pursuing secondary teacher preparation, which will equip him to teach middle or high school students. He has chosen political science as his primary endorsement area, aligning his teaching with his deep understanding of the subject. Alongside classes on educational foundations and educational psychology, Veal has taken a disciplinary literacy class that will prepare him to teach students to read as political science practitioners. Additionally, the course has strengthened his own research.
“I am a minor at the Ford School of Public Policy. I’m doing an independent study on the nexus point between governing boards of institutions and policy. I’m writing my annotated bibliography and I’m using the disciplinary literacy skills that I teach every day to disseminate and decipher information,” says Veal.
Now in his final semester, Veal is student teaching at Huron High School in Ann Arbor where he teaches AP government and one level government. The public speaking and leadership skills he has acquired as a teaching intern influence the leadership style he embodies on campus as Central Student Government President.
“The skills I have learned in the Marsal School have definitely influenced the way that I lead,” says Veal. “I lead a team of 80 people and we represent 53,000 students. How do I make sure we’re representing all of these students with diverse backgrounds, diverse viewpoints, and thought processes? It’s the same thing that I do on Monday morning at 7:45 a.m. to 20 students in the classroom.”
Because Veal is not yet sure if he will pursue a career in the classroom or outside of it—in a public agency working on educational policy, or perhaps in the private sector supporting the work of educators—he appreciates the many ways faculty and staff at the Marsal School have supported him. “They give you the tools and ability to be able to explore different avenues and all that you can do with an education degree.”