Brad Cohen is a motivational speaker and an award-winning teacher and author. He has a severe case of Tourette syndrome, described in his book, Front of the Class: How Tourette Syndrome Made Me the Teacher I Never Had. Tourette syndrome (also called Tourette's syndrome, Tourette's disorder, Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, GTS or more commonly simply Tourette's During his childhood, he was accused of being a troublemaker in school and was unfairly punished by his teachers. He decided to "become the teacher that he never had". After he graduated and received his certificate in teaching, twenty-four elementary schools rejected him before he finally got a job at Mountain View Elementary School in Cobb County, Georgia. As a new teacher, he won Teacher of the Year Award for the State of Georgia. The State of Georgia ( is a state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule Brad Cohen married Nancy Lazarus of Charleston, South Carolina on June 25, 2006. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.
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Early life
Brad grew up in St. Louis, Missouri in a Jewish family. His parents divorced during his early childhood. His mother was compassionate towards him, but his father did not understand Tourette syndrome. He often got frustrated with his son, and he would yell at him for making noises or physical convulsions. When his father moved away, they drifted apart.
School years
Teachers did not understand Brad because they thought he was a michievious student, due to the noises (tics) caused by his Tourette syndrome. A tic is a sudden repetitive nonrhythmic stereotyped motor movement or vocalization involving discrete muscle groups His 5th grade teacher forced him to walk to the front of the classroom to apologize for the noises he made and promise that he would never do them again. He felt humiliated and decided that he would become the teacher he never had. He said, "I wanted to be the teacher who looked at strengths, not weaknesses. "
In the beginning of his eighth grade year, his principal decided to let Brad speak to the school about his Tourette syndrome. Brad continued to speak in front of people about his Tourette syndrome, increasing his confidence and speaking skills.
College life
Cohen attended Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, majoring in teacher education. Bradley University is a private Co-educational University located in Peoria Illinois. Peoria Illinois (named after the Peoria tribe is the largest city on the Illinois River and the County seat of Peoria County, Illinois He was discriminated against while attending Bradley, when he was kicked out of a local fast food restaurant due to his vocal tics. After his peers boycotted the restaurant, the manager anxiously apologized to Brad. Brad graduated cum laude with many academic honors. [1]
Career
Cohen moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in the 1990s to seek employment. He applied to numerous elementary schools for a teaching position. He interviewed with administrators, but his interviews were always punctuated by his tics. A tic is a sudden repetitive nonrhythmic stereotyped motor movement or vocalization involving discrete muscle groups He was rejected twenty-four times befor Mountain View Elementary school hired him to teach second and third grades. He was awarded the Sallie Mae First Class Teacher of the Year in 1997.
Cohen is currently teaching second grade at Tritt Elementary School in the suburbs of Atlanta. At the beginning of each year, he teaches the students about his Tourette syndrome.
Accomplishments
Brad has been active in several organizations. He has been featured in a public service announcement for the Tourette Syndrome Association. The Tourette Syndrome Association ( TSA) based in Bayside New York United States is a Non-profit voluntary organization and the only national health-related organization [2] He also serves as the Vice President for the Tourette Syndrome Association of Georgia. He was a chairman of Relay for Life, a Little League coach, a MLB mascot, and has been recognized for his community involvement. Relay For Life (often shortened to Relay) is a Fundraising event of the American Cancer Society, and is now held in many other countries Little League Baseball is the name of a Non-profit organization in the United States which organizes local children's leagues of baseball and Softball The term mascot – defined as a term for any person animal or object thought to bring Luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common
Cohen's book, Front of the Class: How Tourette Syndrome Made Me the Teacher I Never Had was published in 2005 with Lisa Wysocky. Lisa Wysocky is an author motivational speaker and equine clinician who was born in Minneapolis Minnesota. His book won the Independent Publisher Book Award for Best Education Book of 2005. The Independent Publisher Book Awards ( IPPY) launched in 1996 are designed to bring increased recognition to titles published by independent authors and publishers [3] Brad appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show on May 26, 2006. The Oprah Winfrey Show is a United States syndicated Talk show, hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey, and is the highest-rated [4]
Notes
- ^ VanderWyk & Burnham Authors. Brad Cohen. Accessed 4 June 2006.
- ^ Tourette Syndrome Association. Brad Cohen PSA (PDF). Accessed 4 January 2007.
- ^ Tourette Syndrome Association. Front of the Class wins independent publisher award. Accessed 4 January 2007.
- ^ The Oprah Winfrey Show. Against All Odds. Accessed 3 June 2006.
External links
- Front of the Class - the official website of Brad Cohen's book.
- A short biography of Cohen.
- Video clip from The Oprah Winfrey Show
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