MHS welcomes Mr. Boursaw – Social Studies Teacher
In the courses he taught in California, Messalonskee social studies teacher Drew Boursaw considered a class of 33 an aberration – one of his “small classes.” The other ones had at least 35.
“Thirty five was the max,” he said, “but I had some students at times who would petition to get in, and so I would have 36.”
And that’s why Boursaw, 51, finds his current situation abundantly manageable – never mind that he had next to no time to prepare for his new assignment.
He drove cross country in four days, towing a U-Haul behind his 2018 Chevy Colorado after pulling out of his driveway at 3 in the morning to avoid driving across the desert before the sun rose on a day the temperature hit 110 degrees.
He met Messalonskee principal Paula Callan in person for the first time two days after arriving in Maine – and he started teaching at Messalonskee the same day.
“I’m a go-with-the-flow kind of guy,” Boursaw said.
Callan said her first dealings with Boursaw came when he applied for the social studies opening that occurred when teacher Sarah Donahue departed. Boursaw told Callan that he and his family planned to move to Maine.
Immediately, she said, she got a good vibe from Boursaw, a feeling that he would be a “good fit” at Messalonskee, somebody who would embrace and enhance the school’s culture. Such considerations, Callan said, often matter much more than an impressive resume or sterling letters of recommendations.
Callan said her observations of Boursaw in action in the classroom since he arrived simply confirm that her instincts were on the mark when she hired him.