STAFF PROFILE
Spring 2015
BRUCE TAYLOR
Humanities Teacher
A self-proclaimed busy person, admittedly through his own doing, Bruce Taylor has been instrumental in connecting DC students to some of the world’s foremost intellectuals and activists. His own passion for lifelong learning is what moves him to share that enthusiasm with his students in the humanities and economics classes he teaches. “The drive has always been to directly connect these individuals to the student body with the aim of creating meaningful and lasting connections between real world situations and their course work,” he said. “The impact that such opportunities have on the students is very real and long lasting, which only encourages me to continue to work towards future lectures and visits.” Bruce grew up in Kankakee, Illinois, in the United States, which is a very diverse city, both economically and culturally. This helped shape his interest in human sciences. He holds a Masters of Arts in Secondary Humanities Education from Olivet Nazarene University with undergraduate degrees in both Economics and Astronomy from the University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign. After graduating, Bruce embarked on a career in teaching. He worked at some of the poorest districts in the state of Illinois for more than six years, finding the experience both challenging and rewarding. After meeting his fiancé, a fellow teacher at DundeeCrown High School in Illinois, they quickly decided to teach abroad. Both met Mark Beach at a Toronto recruitment fair and found their way to Discovery College.
Bruce has always strived to engage in current global politics and economics. He and his colleagues are working on a Social Entrepreneurship unit to incorporate into classes, which will hopefully add an interesting depth to the courses for the coming school year. In the meantime, he concentrates on his evolving economics course. “The course, it seems, is undergoing a shift away from the free market policies that have dominated since the early 80’s, so it’s a very interesting time to be teaching economics.” he said. In addition to teaching, Bruce also runs or co-runs a number of student clubs, including Model United Nations, DC Labour Rights, and the Astronomy Club. He is also involved with CAS actions such as the TedEd Club and the Top Activists of the Year Publication. “I’ve been involved with labour activism for about seven years now and it’s something that I would like to be more involved with over time. The DC Labour Rights group has been working on a project for about two years, which has been very exhilarating to lead and help facilitate,” he said. “I couldn’t ask for a better group of students to work with and I’m always humbled by their drive and enthusiasm in tackling such difficult topics.” Outside DC, Bruce remains engaged with labour activism, spending time connecting with NGOs and activists throughout South East Asia. A travel junkie, Bruce loves scuba diving and observational Astronomy. When not on the move, he can be found sitting comfortably with a good cup of coffee. David Thapa Communications and Scholarship Assistant BRUCE TAYLOR
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