James Stone

Previously employed at Mayde Creek High School, James Stone joined the faculty at Tompkins this year as one of the AP Government and US History teachers. Stone originally is from Iowa, and got into politics because Iowa gets a lot of attention from presidential candidates. He attended Iowa State to receive his undergraduate degree and the University of Houston for law school. Stone has been an educator for 20 years.

“I absolutely love teaching Government because it is a subject that is constantly evolving and changing.  In fact, as most of my students will tell you, being up to speed on current events and politics is a critical part of being successful in the course.  The best compliment I receive from students and their parents is when they tell me that they never were into politics before my class. If I can help students become politically active, I feel I am doing my job,” said Stone.

Stone has many hobbies like video making, playing cards and drumming. He and his wife hold season tickets to the Texans and they attend almost every home game. Since Stone is a father of three, his dad duties include making sure his kids make it on the bus every morning and are picked up after school.

“I also enjoy building things – I usually have one summer project – this past year it was a ridiculous Presidential podium that I built for my own amusement. I teach Government, I felt I should have a government-like podium, before that I built poker tables and tailgating Bluetooth speakers. I also build computers and enjoy shooting and editing video,” said Stone.
Stone is one of few teachers at Tompkins that push their students to look at what is happening in the world. Government is a big part of his everyday life. He generates class discussions over current events and what is going on with the presidential election. His students enjoy having a class that talks about real world problems and systems that can engage them.