Leading By Example

Eli Valder is a high school social studies teacher at Maranatha.

Before MCA, Mr. Valder was a student at North Central University and taught for a year at a small Catholic school in Little Canada. "I was the middle school social studies teacher. It was a small school. It was K-8, and I was the elementary gym teacher and the part-time athletic director." Eli did this for a year before he got a call from our then middle school social studies teacher, Josh Agrimson, now assistant principal, about an opening in the social studies department that he should check out (Josh and Eli went to North Central together). Eli applied for the job, got it, and has been here ever since.
When asked what Christian education means, Eli said,

"I think there is tremendous value in having Christian thought throughout school, because sometimes growing up, I thought of schooling and faith as separate things, [...] being here [at Maranatha] is the same. We push to integrate the Bible in everything we teach."

Eli talked about how being a part of Maranatha is a big draw for him, as he is not teaching at a public school. Being in a position where he can freely talk about God and share Jesus is everything to him. 

In the fallen world that we live in, where so many people have hidden agendas for what they do and do not do, Mr. Valder strives to be someone that his students can trust and turn to. "I want students to come into my classroom and feel comfortable, because they know who I am and they know I'm not trying to be anybody else [...]." He also wants to instill into his students that to be successful in life, you must remain teachable and coachable. Those who think they know it all or have nothing more to learn will fail. To remain teachable is to invite success into your life. 

Along with coaching students in the classroom, Mr. Valder is heavily involved in athletics. Having been an athlete all his life, Eli serves as a site manager and coaches baseball in the spring. "Sports have been a big part of my life for my whole life. My parents were really big into getting their kids involved in many sports. [...] I had tennis lessons, swam, played basketball, went bowling, and played soccer. The ones that stuck were just football and baseball, but, you know, I've tried everything." Mr. Valder loves being involved in both the teaching world and athletics, which he sees himself continuing to do into the future. 

When asked what his favorite movie is, Mr. Valder said, "I really love 'The Dark Knight.' It's a movie I never get sick of [...] I think that movie is an absolute masterpiece." And when asked about whether he could live anywhere, where that would be, Eli said, "[...] a goal of my wife and I is to someday live on a lake. I've always wanted to live on a lake. [...] I love being in the water, and it's just relaxing, you know? My buddy has a cabin in Wisconsin, we go to his cabin as couples every summer, and it is the most peaceful time of the summer." 

Mr. Valder is one of the most beloved teachers here at Maranatha. He genuinely cares for his students, so much so that in the spring of 2024, the senior class nominated him to be their keynote speaker for graduation. Mr. Valder was honored, albeit nervous at the prospect, but was incredibly blessed to be seen as such an impactful and positive role model in his students' lives.