From Welding to Film: Crafting Educational Magic

Anthony Parker's journey from the welding workshop to the classroom is as riveting as it is inspiring. Join us at Spotlight for Success as we explore how a love for film ignited a passion for education in this dynamic teacher from Northeast High School, East Baton Rouge. Anthony's narrative unfurls with his transition from the Los Angeles Film School to becoming Teacher of the Year, blending his cinematic expertise with an innovative teaching style that captivates students and faculty alike. This episode promises a peek into his creative world, where students aren't just learning but actively participating in projects like the zombie film "Fady Impact."

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Transcript

Devin Pintozzi: 0:00

Welcome to Spotlight for Success by American Book Company. We are here at LACUE with Anthony Parker. Anthony Parker, thank you for joining us today.

Anthony Parker: 0:11

Yes, I'm glad to be here.

Devin Pintozzi: 0:12

Yeah, he's there with, is it Northeast High School?

Anthony Parker: 0:15

Northeast High School.

Devin Pintozzi: 0:16

In East Baton Rouge?

Anthony Parker: 0:17

Yes, sir.

Devin Pintozzi: 0:18

All right, I am Devin Pintozzi, your host, and we're going to get started, all right?

Anthony Parker: 0:22

All right,

Devin Pintozzi: 0:23

Anthony, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Anthony Parker: 0:26

Oh, I teach at Northeast High School. I've been teaching two years. Before teaching I was actually a certified welder. I've been doing it for 13 years,

Devin Pintozzi: 0:35

Wow. So what got you into teaching?

Anthony Parker: 0:37

What got me into teaching was I went to school in Los Angeles, California

Devin Pintozzi: 0:41

Okay.

Anthony Parker: 0:46

And in film. So I went to Los Angeles Film School, did four years, got my bachelor's in that, but prior to me being in there, I was doing movies while I was in school.

Devin Pintozzi: 0:58

Oh, wow.

Anthony Parker: 0:58

So I was also teaching on set everything that I was learning in school.

Devin Pintozzi: 1:04

Wow

Anthony Parker: 1:04

So I said, oh, I might as well just go ahead and join the educational field. I saw signs everywhere. They're looking for teachers. So I went into the sub field. So I went in as a paraprofessional. So I started learning while in the paraprofessional, which is a sub.

Anthony Parker: 1:20

So, as I'm subbing, I'm learning, so I started liking it. The principal came to me and she saw how good I was going and the kids loved me. I said well, man, we're going to give it a shot. The whole school liked me.

Devin Pintozzi: 1:34

Oh, there you go.

Anthony Parker: 1:35

Give it a shot. This is actually my second year. Well, sorry, I'm pushing the gun. I'm pushing the gun. Let me go back a little bit. January is going to make a year.

Devin Pintozzi: 1:49

Okay,

Anthony Parker: 1:51

January, they brought me on to be a teacher in January.

Devin Pintozzi: 1:55

Wonderful.

Anthony Parker: 1:57

I just made teacher of the year.

Devin Pintozzi: 1:59

Oh congratulations.

Anthony Parker: 2:00

So I'm teacher of the year at Northeast High School.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:01

Northeast High, Wonderful, wonderful,

Devin Pintozzi: 2:02

That's awesome.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:09

and then

Anthony Parker: 2:10

and then I'll also be coaching.

Anthony Parker: 2:11

So the kids, they like the movies that I actually produce.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:16

Oh nice,

Anthony Parker: 2:17

the school wanted me to teach digital media broadcasting and photography.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:22

Oh wow, what kind of movies do you produce?

Anthony Parker: 2:24

Action film.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:25

Really?

Anthony Parker: 2:26

I also got my students. Right now we're working on a project. It's a zombie film called faded impact.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:32

Oh nice

Anthony Parker: 2:32

that we're shooting at the school right now.

Anthony Parker: 2:34

Our first project with my students that we filmed well, it's gonna be a movie.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:40

Oh, that's great. So where can uh? Where can uh people from LACUE if they want to see your work or want to see your students' work? Where can they see that?

Anthony Parker: 2:48

Actually they can go on our Instagram page and type up Surviving Northeast. They can also see the morning announcements and see the photography shots. They can see the students at work.

Devin Pintozzi: 2:59

Oh, wow,

Anthony Parker: 2:59

Live.

Devin Pintozzi: 3:00

That is awesome. That is awesome and what a great experience for the students and getting them involved in film and the entertainment industry right from the get-go, right in high school.

Anthony Parker: 3:09

Yeah.

Devin Pintozzi: 3:09

yeah, that's incredible. Wow, you're doing a lot of things there.

Anthony Parker: 3:13

I got a lot of things going on and it motivates me to keep going.

Devin Pintozzi: 3:17

Yeah.

Anthony Parker: 3:17

And I'm going past the educational field and teaching, I also go to LSU.

Devin Pintozzi: 3:31

Oh wonderful, whats your masters in?

Anthony Parker: 3:32

Educational leadership.

Devin Pintozzi: 3:32

Educational leadership

Anthony Parker: 3:33

To be a principal

Devin Pintozzi: 3:35

oh nice, wonderful Good for you. You're getting all set up here. This is great. So tell me a bit about did you have a special time where you felt like the students were really getting it you want to share with us?

Anthony Parker: 3:52

Oh man, I got a lot, I got plenty, but I'm going to speak on this one. I had one student that didn't like my class at all.

Anthony Parker: 3:59

They just put him in there. The guidance counselor just threw him in there just give them an extra class that they needed.

Anthony Parker: 4:07

They didn't need that class, but they had to have that class. Any other class?

Anthony Parker: 4:11

but they just threw them in that class because they needed it. They filled up the room, the space. I kept having problems. They didn't want to get up, they didn't want to participate.

Anthony Parker: 4:21

I said I got something for them.

Anthony Parker: 4:24

I started learning that student and what that student liked and I started adding it to the curriculum. She started helping. I got a leader in my class. She started helping him, and when she started helping him, he liked her.

Anthony Parker: 4:43

She started helping him.

Anthony Parker: 4:45

He started getting excited and it motivated him to participate in everything that I had going on in class. And guess what? That student's the top of the class now.

Devin Pintozzi: 4:55

Oh wow, what a wonderful story.

Devin Pintozzi: 4:58

That is great. It's great to see those happening

Anthony Parker: 5:00

Right now.

Devin Pintozzi: 5:00

See that success going

Anthony Parker: 5:01

Guess what?

Anthony Parker: 5:03

The leader that helped him. He topped her

Devin Pintozzi: 5:08

wow, wow.

Devin Pintozzi: 5:09

That is wonderful. That's just that, that leadership and and people helping each other up through film and

Anthony Parker: 5:16

Guess what all that he motivates me too.

Devin Pintozzi: 5:18

Oh wow

Anthony Parker: 5:19

Because he motivated me, because I was giving up. Oh my god, I was giving up on him. I was about to get him put into another class and I said no, I believe I can get him, I can mold him, I can get him.

Devin Pintozzi: 5:33

Oh, that's awesome,

Anthony Parker: 5:35

and I got him.

Devin Pintozzi: 5:37

That's great, Anthony. What an incredible story. So now you're here at LACUE. What are you hoping to get out of this conference that you're going to take back to your kids?

Anthony Parker: 5:48

Okay, so I'm actually here down with esports, so we down here, down the whole esports team, we down here to kind of build the team out this way So my whole eSports, EBR, eSports from Baton Rouge. We are here so we're networking to get more kids involved to the program, and to eSports, and to eSports

Devin Pintozzi: 6:15

Okay,

Anthony Parker: 6:15

but I wanted to come. It's a trick, because you know I do film

Devin Pintozzi: 6:19

Okay. Right.

Anthony Parker: 6:21

I wanted to get networked with other people in digital media that's in other educational fields, in digital media.

Anthony Parker: 6:26

I was hoping to run across a couple of teachers that's actually doing what I'm doing.

Devin Pintozzi: 6:32

Wonderful

Anthony Parker: 6:32

and kind of exchange numbers,

Devin Pintozzi: 6:34

that's great.

Anthony Parker: 6:35

And work network together,

Devin Pintozzi: 6:37

that's wonderful

Anthony Parker: 6:37

that's what I wanted to do,

Devin Pintozzi: 6:39

oh wow.

Devin Pintozzi: 6:40

Well, that's great. I hope you're able to,

Anthony Parker: 6:41

but I ran across y'all

Devin Pintozzi: 6:41

That's great, that's great, that's great and we're part of that, hopefully for you, and I hope you also make other connections and you make a lot of them, you know, here at LACUE.

Anthony Parker: 6:50

Yes, sir,

Devin Pintozzi: 6:50

it would be a great thing. Yes, that's awesome. Do you have anything you'd like to share directly with? the LACUE community. Any message you want to share them?

Anthony Parker: 6:58

I would like to. Don't give up. Don't give up. Continue to go for what you need. Don't give up. It's there for you. Don't give up,

Devin Pintozzi: 7:09

'that's awesome. Thank you so much. That's Anthony Parker with Northeast High School in East Baton Rouge. Thank you so much for joining us today.

Anthony Parker: 7:18

Nice to be here with you, Devin

Devin Pintozzi: 7:19

All right.

Anthony Parker: 7:19

Thank you.