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FAMILY
- My name is Garrett Sims, and I am a fourth grade teacher at Fairview Elementary School. I was born and raised in Bellevue, Nebraska. I am the youngest of five children. I have two older brothers and two older sisters. My oldest sister, Maureen, has been a teacher for the last 18 years and is currently the assistant principal at Liberty Elementary School, in OPS. My oldest brother, Daniel, operates the Complete Music DJ service in St. Louis, Missouri. My other brother, John, owns a roofing company, here in town, called Alternative Roof and Deck Care. My other sister, Michaela, lives in Washington D.C. and worked as a lawyer for Senator Bob Kerrey and currently works for Senator Ben Nelson. My parents both live in Bellevue and retired a few of years ago after running a couple different local businesses over the last thirty years.
- I married my wife, Kristine, in the fall of 1997. Kris works for a group of doctors in Omaha. We live in Pilgrim's Landing, right behind Fairview. Our first son, Charles Martin (Charlie), was born on April 29, 2002! Charlie is starting 1st Grade at Fairview this fall. Our second son, Joseph Garrett, was born on September 5, 2004! We are expecting our third son to arrive in January 2009!!
- I attended St. Mary's School in Bellevue from Kindergarten through eighth grade. From there, I went on to Daniel J. Gross High School. After graduation from high school, I spent one year in St. Paul, Minnesota, attending St. Thomas University, where I looked into the possibility of becoming a priest. It was a tough decision, but I decided to return to Omaha and pursue a degree in Elementary Education. I graduated from Creighton University in 1995. In January of 2000, I completed work in my masters. I received a Masters degree from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts in Educational Technology.
- In the fall of 1995, I was offered a position at my alma mater, St. Mary's of Bellevue. I served as a K-8 Computer Teacher and also worked as the Resource Teacher. I left St. Mary's the following year and opened my own computer company, Sims Computer Services. I provided technical help for computer users and also spent time upgrading existing computers. In the fall of 1997, I was offered a position with the Bellevue Public School District. I immediately accepted and began teaching fourth grade at LeMay Elementary School. When a position became open at Fairview Elementary in Bellevue, in the Summer of 2001, I decided to transfer over to the Firebirds. That fall, I was recipient of Bellevue Public School's "Champions For Children" award. Dr. Deegan, the Superintendent of Bellevue Schools, stopped by our classroom to make the presentation. I was extremely surprised and honored! This past summer I developed a Science Camp for the Bellevue Public Schools that ran for a week in July! I am hoping to offer it again next summer.
- When I am not teaching, I enjoy watching movies, going for walks, trying to repair things around our house, and reading. I also frequently can be found on the computer and I maintain several websites (including this one). I am quite a movie buff and even used to write movie reviews for both my high school and college newspapers. Many people think I am a 'walking encyclopedia' of movie trivia knowledge. I don't know about that, however I would like to write a movie screenplay someday.
- We recently purchased a Wii and we enjoy playing Wii Sports, Rock Band, Guitar Hero, and Mario Kart. When I have a bit of free time, I might be found building a robot or selling items on eBay. eBay selling is something I do in my spare time and over the years I have become an eBay PowerSeller - something I am proud to have accomplished. Finally, I am a long time fan of the Nebraska Cornhuskers! Although recent years of Husker Football have been unusual by NU standards, I am excited for Coach Pelini's first season with the team.
Watch Did You Know 2.0 for some interesting information about America & Education