There won’t be any more in class World War I conversations for former European Studies teacher Casey Stookey. This September, Stookey made the leap from teacher to administrator when he took on the new role as Liberty’s Dean of Students.

“My role is [to most importantly] support the kids and I think that is just [about] having my ears open,” Stookey said. “I am out in the hallways; I am at lunch, and a lot of kids approach me and talk to me about different situations.”

Stookey’s new role also involves organizing the standardized tests, such as the PSAT students took last week and the AP tests that students take in the spring. He is in charge of absences and truancies as well. Stookey believes his main job is not to be in charge of discipline but to help support the students and be a sounding board for whatever they need to talk about.

Stookey says he misses the ability to get to know students in his classes and to see them every day.

“I would learn from [students] in a lot more ways than anybody else I would have contact with,” Stookey said. “I miss that day-to-day interaction…[helping] each other be successful in the classroom.”

Stookey is aiding his transition to his new position by spending time in the lunch room conversing with old students.