To Whom It May Concern:
As a student, I always had a constant craving for intellectual growth and academic challenge. Yet the most difficult test occurred after the many rewarding years of education when I was thrown into the “real world” with so many questions about who and what I wanted to be. Through a great deal of soul searching, I realized that I desire a career and a lifestyle where I could satisfy that passionate need to further develop and stimulate the mind. According to Aristotle, “Teaching is the highest form of understanding,” and it is in this quotation that I enthusiastically believe in my ability to be a successful teacher. I also recognized that aligning my subject matter with my interests and skills would further embrace who I am and cultivate a more meaningful educational experience for my students. In a sense, I can teach what I have always loved to learn, bestowing students with the same exciting feeling that I had the first time that I was introduced to something I really identified with. As a result, after considering my background and interests in academia, athletics and arts, I believe I would be a valuable tutor.
My educational experiences have resulted in two Bachelors’ degrees in business and music business from two separate universities, a Master’s degree in Accountancy, and a Certified Public Accounting License in the State of Tennessee. My academic experience began at Franklin Road Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. FRA is a small, independent, college preparatory school that focuses on the well-roundedness and growth of the individual through a highly-networked, family type of environment. It was FRA that helped lay much of the foundation for who I am today. I obtained my first Bachelor’s degree and my Master’s from Rhodes College, a small, liberal arts establishment founded upon the commitment of learning as a life-long pursuit. At Rhodes, I truly developed an enthusiasm for knowledge and challenging myself academically. I received my second Bachelor’s degree two years later from Belmont University with an emphasis on their world renowned music business program. At each educational institution, I received a 3.7 or better GPA and qualified for the Dean’s List or Honor Roll every semester.
My athletic life followed along the same path as my education with similar successful results. At FRA, I led the State of Tennessee in scoring my senior year, was the All-time leading scorer in my school’s history and set a school record for most points ever scored in a single game with seventy-one points. I played three years of collegiate varsity basketball at both Belmont and Rhodes and was named All-Conference and All-Academic every year. I played on a number of nationally-ranked AAU teams and attended various recruiting camps sponsored by Nike and Adidas every summer growing up. I learned the fundamentals of basketball and developed my career through school teams, summer teams, city-league teams, and camps at David Lipscomb, Colonnade, MTSU, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky where I received the MVP award multiple times. I was the captain of my team and was consistently called upon to be a leader and a floor-coach. I also coached and educated many kids on the fundamentals of basketball and teamwork through various summer camps where I served as a camp counselor. Overall, basketball has played an enormous role in my development and I would thoroughly enjoy applying my background and abilities in this area of interest.
Just as basketball was a way for me to express myself and be innovative and creative out on the court, music has also been a significant outlet for my artistic needs. I took formal piano lessons as a child but was quickly turned off by the tedious exercises and the monotony of beginner song selections. I took a long break and turned to athletics until I picked up my friend’s guitar and couldn’t put it down. From there I received lessons from friends to professional guitarists, bought books on music theory and commercial tablatures and practiced for hours everyday. I formed a band, wrote, recorded, produced and marketed four musical albums and played some live shows in small venues across the country. I picked piano back up in college with two semesters of classical piano and a general music theory class. In addition, I applied the techniques and knowledge from playing the guitar and essentially translated that onto the piano. Soon enough, I had bought my own electronic piano, built a studio in my house, and began producing and writing a variety of music using complex, highly developed recording software. I currently work within the music industry managing money for artist and entertainers, as well as in a business development role in an effort to sign new clients. I continue to create and practice everyday and would strongly want to be involved with teaching music.
In closing, with my experience, abilities, and most importantly, my passions, I believe that I would be a suitable candidate to fulfill your needs. If there is any availability, I would like to respectively request an interview. Please feel free to call me in the near future in order to facilitate that arrangement, and I look forward to speaking with you soon. Thank you for taking time to read this letter and for your thoughtful consideration of my application.
Sincerely yours,
Wes