Working with so many different clubs and organizations can be stressful to manage. For Ben Boruff, it serves as another opportunity to learn and share experiences.
Boruff grew up on the northside of Indianapolis in Castleton, attending Lawrence Central High School. In his senior year, he began to pursue teaching when he got opportunities to work with some younger students.
“It always just clicked for me,” Boruff said. “I planned to pursue it until college if it didn’t feel right, but it only ever did. I’ve always had a love for English as well.”
He continued pursuing teaching at Indiana University (IU) Bloomington for 4 1/2 years. The additional semester came from missing the deadline to do student teaching in the spring. However, this opportunity served as a blessing in disguise for Boruff.
“A lot of my friends did their student teaching in the spring,” Boruff said. “I thought it was nice to be able to have that experience during the beginning of the school year.”
Boruff began student teaching in the Indianapolis area at North Central High School. He started out teaching beginner and intermediate English.
“It was a fun experience,” Boruff said. “There were probably more than 20 different countries represented in my classes and about as many languages spoken.”
After the preliminary student teaching experience, Boruff began serving as a substitute teacher in the Indianapolis area until he got hired at Wheeler High School, where he went on to work for six years. From there, he transitioned to Munster High School and has been teaching English courses there for the last five years.
On top of teaching English, Boruff serves as an assistant speech teacher at Munster High School.
As a teacher, Boruff keeps himself very occupied with extracurricular activities for the students. He has worked with students in clubs such as National Honor Society, academic bowls, Spell Bowl, Creative Writing Club, Film Club, Poetry Club, Mental Health Club and an unofficial Dungeons & Dragons club.
“I always appreciate it whenever students are comfortable enough to come to me asking if I can help them out or sponsor their club,” Boruff said. “Being approachable is what’s really important for me.”
Outside of school, Boruff likes to travel whenever he gets the opportunity. Occasionally, he will travel to different cinemas across various states with some of his movie buff friends.
Boruff is also affiliated with multiple education groups, such as Dollars for Scholars and the alumni member board for the IU School of Education. He considers himself an advocate for mental health and the LGBTQ+ community.
As for the future, Boruff is still as motivated as ever teaching high school students. He loves working with them and has a lot of excitement in helping students along their educational journeys. At some point, he would like to work towards his dream of receiving his PhD degree. However, Boruff believes that high school teaching is his bread and butter right now.
“My goal, whether it’s in the classroom or not, has always been to emulate some of the role models and mentors that I’ve had,” Boruff said. “I try to give as much of myself to others as I can.”