Cache Valley Family Magazine contributing writer Tara Bone recently teamed up with local middle school students to find and share more stories about the remarkable people of Cache Valley. The Middle School students learned about the people in their neighborhood while developing their writing skills. This People in the Neighborhood article is written by Emi Mano, a 7th grade student at Thomas Edison Charter School.
Every semester at Utah State University (USU), computer science Professor Chad Mano faces 400 college students who are eager to learn.
“It can be challenging [teaching so many students],” Chad said. “I used to know every student in my class, and now there are just too many. I like the smaller classes more, it’s not as personal now.”
Teaching is a hard job. Chad taught from 2006 to 2011 and then left to work with his wife, Rachel, and help a company called Thrive Life. He came back to teaching in 2015 and is still working now. Since he has been back, he has won the Teacher of the Year award for both The College of Engineering and Computer Science Department. He also received the United States Department of Defense Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Patriot Award. Chad was the first teacher in higher education to receive this award.
Chad believes there are many rewards to teaching, though there are challenges. Some of the challenges computer science teachers face are the constant changes in technology and the large class sizes. But Chad feels that the rewards outweigh the challenges.
“Many students have let me know I’ve helped them to achieve their goals,” Chad said. “That feels really good.”
The best kind of students Chad says are those who are hard-working and ready to learn. “The best students are ones that attend all their classes, start homework early, and love to learn,” Chad said. “Our best students qualify for great jobs while they’re a student too. That helps give them experience and pay for school too.”
In his free time, Chad loves nature and to be outside, but most of all he loves fly fishing. Chad also loves to be with his four kids and wife. His oldest, Logan, is currently serving a mission. Chad loves his family, his students, and most of all teaching computer science.
