Many students and teachers alike know Michael Graham for his detailed life stories and quick witted responses. After 17 years of teaching at Niles West and 15 at Niles North, the longtime English teacher is retiring at the end of the 25-26 school year. Graham teaches the literature of sports in American culture, freshman English, and digital storytelling. Graham also used to coach cross country and was the yearbook advisor years ago.
Graham was never a fan of school as a kid, and he never planned on it being his job. Graham, originally from Philadelphia, moved to Chicago to become a lawyer.
“I was in law school at the time, and hated [it],” Graham said. “When I dropped out of law school, I called home to tell my mom that I was leaving law school, and she said, ‘What are you gonna do?’ I had literally sat down in the middle of the night and made a list of all the things I wanted from a career and all the things I didn’t. And on paper, the only thing that made sense was teaching.”
Graham has made many memories throughout his time at West. From his first time teaching in the building to his last teacher institute day, Graham is grateful for each moment.
“I was in a play [at West] years ago,” Graham said. “They did a version of the Breakfast Club, and they had teachers doing some of the roles. And that was really fun. I enjoyed that.”
Sophomore Lillian Freeman had Graham last year for English. Freeman will miss the kindness that Graham spread around the school.
“My favorite part about him was that he truly cared about how his students were doing,” Freeman said. “He would always do this thing on Mondays called [the] weekend update, and everyone shared how their weekend went.”
In the classroom, Graham teaches many different units and classes. From “Romeo and Juliet” to college prep courses, his syllabus has it all.
“I really liked Literature of Sports,” Graham said. “It’s a different kind of class than the traditional English class,” Graham said. “So I really enjoyed that, and I had a really nice group.”
West English teacher and wife of Graham, Sally Graham, has taught with him for a long time. The two met while working in the district in the late 90s. She reflected on some of her favorite memories at work with him.
“Every day he ends class with this quote, which I find really inspiring, ‘Have a great day filled with joy and hope and peace and love and goodness and happiness,'” Graham said. “If you can’t do that, at least please—don’t hurt nobody,’ and I have a student in my sophomore class this year who had him as a freshman, and sometimes he’ll say that on his way out of class.”
Niles West thanks Graham for his 17 years of dedication to the school community and wishes him the best of luck in his retirement.
