In the five years Robert Wagler has worked at Schoolcraft Junior-Senior High School, he has formed and participated in several projects and programs that benefit the community. Alongside teaching Accounting and Business Management and Administration (BMA), Wagler is class sponsor for Schoolcraft’s sophomores, assists in running Schoolcraft’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes branch, and is the advisor for Schoolcraft’s branch of Distributive Education Clubs of America, where students learn skills to prepare them for careers in business and finance. Beyond Schoolcraft, Wagler pastors the Life Church of Centreville and runs a non-profit organization with his wife called “Rooted of St. Joseph County, Inc.” where they help care for children transitioning into foster care.
Wagler also works with Junior Achievement, a global organization that allows business professionals to connect with students. Each year, his BMA students compete in a realistic simulator as CEOs in the phone industry to learn about the different aspects of running a company. Wagler then takes select students to an event hosted by Western Michigan University, where Schoolcraft’s representatives compete against teams from other schools to form the most successful company. Schoolcraft has won twice in Wagler’s five years of teaching.
When asked about his motivation for doing so much, Wagler said, “I’m a very driven person. I don’t sit still very easily, and I like creating goals and moving to achieve goals. I like helping others. I like seeing students grow. I like seeing the connection and passion students have when they’re able to do things—especially when they connect to potential careers or real-world opportunities. [My wife and I] see a lot of need in the world—especially in our backyard, in our community—and we just wanted to help and see good things happen in our world.”
Wagler constantly works to grow as a husband, father, teacher, pastor, and person. “I think there’s always room to be better as a teacher…The world around us is changing very quickly, so I want to keep learning more about and keeping the forefront of what’s going on in the world so I can keep that in the classroom, too.”
Wagler’s favorite part about teaching and volunteering in the community is the relationships formed along the way. “There’s a lot of people in our world who are going through difficult things. I think [my favorite part is] being able to help people when they’re in a very rough spot—especially kids who can’t help themselves, being able to step in and being able to help see them come out of a difficult circumstance … or at least to see a relief to stress, shame, or feelings of hopelessness, to provide a joy or to provide hope, or to just change circumstances, to redirect people to where they see that they can accomplish something.”
As for Wagler’s favorite part about working in ministry, he said, “I’m a very teaching-oriented pastor…Most people aren’t familiar with the depth of what Scripture says, and I love being able to bring that out and being able to connect history and faith points and the reality of what God tries to teach us through all of history. It’s kind of the same as in the classroom; seeing people learn things—seeing the dots connect—is great.”
Wagler plans to continue teaching at Schoolcraft and working in ministry “to help people understand God and help people, like I believe we’re called to do.” After retiring, Wagler dreams of opening a comic book and collectibles shop and traveling to watch baseball games at different parks across the country. But he promises that he is “always going to stay active in doing things that help people that are involved in our community.”
