{"id":73,"date":"2025-02-17T20:29:44","date_gmt":"2025-02-17T20:29:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/"},"modified":"2025-02-18T18:58:59","modified_gmt":"2025-02-18T18:58:59","slug":"weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/","title":{"rendered":"Weller teaches, makes College and Texas history"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Eddie Weller fell in love with teaching after taking his former professor Ben Proctor\u2019s advice to give it a try.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thirty-five years later, Weller is still going strong as the San Jacinto College Honors Program director\u202fand National Collegiate Honors Council president.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNothing gets me more excited than seeing the kind of change taking a history class can inspire in someone,\u201d Weller said. \u201cHistory teaches you to think critically. The honors program wants you to question why something happened, not just memorize everything. That\u2019s what both history and honors have in common.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Image

Dr. Eddie Weller<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Paying kindness forward<\/span><\/h3>\n

Weller made his mark when he started the College\u2019s honors program in 1996.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur students participate in several events like the National Conference for Undergraduate Research, the premier research conference in America,\u201d he said. \u201cLast year, out of about 89 community college presentations, 22 were from San Jac. That sets us apart.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Weller\u2019s career is a testament to a teacher\u2019s kindness.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBen Proctor invested his life in my life and changed my whole trajectory. He cared deeply,\u201d Weller said. \u201cI do it to pay back even just a small portion of what he gave to me because I know what a significant impact that effort can have on a student\u2019s future.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Weller credits San Jac\u2019s \u201camazing faculty members\u201d for the honors program\u2019s success. They continuously find ways to boost student success, such as mentoring them throughout the research paper process. Many of these papers have won awards and publication on both state and national levels.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a co-sponsor of the Walter Prescott Webb Historical Society since 1989, Weller has taken students on trips all over Texas. An honors summer course offers international travel, most recently to Madrid and Barcelona.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou give up a lot of time on weekends for it, but it\u2019s worth it,\u201d he said. \u201cThe trips and conferences allow students to see history come to life, which often changes their perspectives.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Always focused on student success<\/span><\/h3>\n

What keeps Weller at San Jac? He enjoys working with students most of all.<\/span><\/p>\n

Weller gives essay exams, which he counts twice, and someone once told him this approach seems like so much work, so why do it?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe day I stop giving essay exams is the day I retire,\u201d Weller said. \u201cBecause in history, you\u2019ve got to be able to tell that story. You\u2019ve got to be able to understand cause and effect and understand why something happened, and I could never do that in multiple-choice tests, but I can in essays, and my students can.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

He has seen great progress using this method as some students don\u2019t have much luck at first but end up excelling by finals.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll drop one of the first test grades, so I\u2019ve had people come in with an F on the first test and end up with an A in the class,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Career-wise, Weller feels fulfilled and fortunate for many valuable opportunities.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m president this year of the National Collegiate Honors Council, which makes me the sixth one in 60 years from a community college,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve often been the first community college person to do something \u2014 first to be president of the Southwestern Historical Association and the Southwestern Social Science Association and first to be an officer of the Texas State Historical Association when I was secretary.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Weller praises the College\u2019s unwavering support for allowing him to accomplish so much in his career.<\/span><\/p>\n

Future plans<\/span><\/h3>\n

Weller doesn\u2019t have anything else on his radar other than having fun at San Jac, doing what he loves, and promoting a fun and engaging learning environment for students.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s where I really see the rest of my career going, however long that may be,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Neesha Hosein<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Eddie Weller fell in love with teaching after taking his former professor Ben Proctor\u2019s advice to give it a try. Thirty-five years later, Weller is still going strong as the San Jacinto College Honors Program director\u202fand National Collegiate Honors Council president. \u201cNothing gets me more excited than seeing the kind of change taking a… read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1],"tags":[],"article_type":[],"class_list":["post-73","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spotlights","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nWeller teaches, makes College and Texas history - Spring 2025, Volume 6 \u2013 Issue 1<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Weller teaches, makes College and Texas history\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dr. Eddie Weller fell in love with teaching after taking his former professor Ben Proctor\u2019s advice to give it a try. Thirty-five years later, Weller is still going strong as the San Jacinto College Honors Program director\u202fand National Collegiate Honors Council president. \u201cNothing gets me more excited than seeing the kind of change taking a... read more\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Spring 2025, Volume 6 \u2013 Issue 1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-17T20:29:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-02-18T18:58:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2025\/02\/spotlight_800.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"sanjaccreate\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"sanjaccreate\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/spring-2025-volume-6-issue-1\/weller-teaches-makes-college-and-texas-history\/\",\"name\":\"Weller teaches, makes College and Texas history - 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