Gallery • 11 Photos

When students walk into Mr. Howard’s classroom, they are greeted by a plethora of Star Wars toys, action figures, plushies, and posters alongside similar collectibles from other TV shows and movies, most of them Sci-fi as well.

Mr. Howard (English teacher) began teaching fifteen years ago, but it was only nine years ago when he began displaying his collection in his classroom after he had moved into a larger room. While most of his collection is Star Wars memorabilia, most of his other toys are either from his childhood or were given to him by students. He also proudly displays student-made artwork, saying: “It makes [students] feel good about adding to the collection themselves.”

His goal is to create a fun learning environment and to share what he enjoys with others. “The reason that I do this in the first place is because we, students and myself, spend seven and a half hours a day in these boxes,” Mr. Howard says. “It’s important for me to be able to enjoy my environment and to be able to look at things that make me smile. Hopefully, it will make them smile and see things that they’ll enjoy. It just adds a little bit of excitement to what, a lot of times, are rooms that are just big white boxes.”

The collection began with a display confined to the top of a cabinet in the corner of his classroom. That lasted a couple years until he couldn’t fit anymore memorabilia atop it. When the new Star Wars movies came out, the collection expanded with twelve and twenty-four-inch figures, including the huge Darth Vader statue he received from his mother in the mail. When he asked her (over the phone) why she had sent it to him, she responded: “Can I not buy something for my son?” and hung up.

Mr. Howard has a high opinion of the latest Star Wars movie, The Last Jedi. According to him, it breaks away from the formulas of the old movies. However, he does believe that it has its problems. For example, the “Alien Kentucky Derby” scene is an issue. “The movie’s about killing the past, and Star Wars fans sometimes don’t want to do that,” he comments. “That, as a movie buff, I thought was extremely smart and well played.”

Mr. Howard wants students to take in more than just the day’s lesson when they leave the room. “It’s also a way for them just to see that it’s okay for them to be passionate about something that other people are not. You can do your own thing and enjoy it.”