7 Questions with Dave Mayer, History Teacher and Author

    

Dave Mayer grew up in Illinois where he  earned his Bachelors and Masters degrees. After earning my Masters from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale he moved to Georgia over 18 years ago. Since the late 90s, he has taught social studies at the high school level and coached baseball.  He is a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan and Nebraska Cornhuskers fan. He's published three fictional books about teenagers, baseball, and life in rural Illinois, and a fourth will be published later this year. He lives with his dog (Sophie) and two outdoor cats (Kitty Kitty and Tiger) in metro Atlanta. 

1.                  How and when did you get  hooked on history? 

 I can't really say when specifically but I remember in 5th grade working ahead of everyone else in our history workbook and really getting interested in the Civil War. 

2.                  What role does history play or has it played in your personal life?  

Well I am a high school history teacher so it plays a role in that way.  It also leads me in my beliefs and the way I look at the world. 

3.                  How has history played  a part of your professional life/career?  

I am finishing up my 24th year of teaching. I have taught 6 years in a small school in southern Illinois and the rest have been in GA. I love teaching history and connecting the past to the present. When teaching history I try to stress that history is told through many points of views. 

4.                  Why is studying/knowing history important? 

I firmly believe you can't truly know where you are going without understanding the past so in that way that's how I approach history 

5.                  What is your favorite period or aspect of history to learn about and why? 

 It used to be the Civil War when I was younger. As I have gotten older I have really gotten more interested in the World Wars. One of my favorite subjects to teach though is imperialism and how that played a role in the 20th Century. 

6.         How has the pandemic affected you and your students?  

Well we have done almost everything virtually. It's affected me the most in connecting with my students. I would often feed off of the students when teaching and this year has been really hard because many of them I don't even know what they look like. 

7.         Tell us about your books. What prompted you to write them and what kind of readers would enjoy your books? 

My books are a coming of age series. They are mainly geared to young adults but I know of numerous readers who have read them and enjoyed them that are in their 40s or older. I started writing about 8 years ago because I felt like I had a story to tell. Some of that is born out of my experiences in southern Illinois where it was historically a segregated region and where the KKK resided.  My first three books are about two African American brothers and their family that move to an all white town. The books are about acceptance, friendship, racism, untimely death, and other issues young adults face as they grow up.