At Mayfield High School, teachers do more than just teach. Matthew Mihalik is no exception.

Mihalik, who was hired as a member of the social studies department, is in his first school year as a Wildcat. He also serves as an assistant coach for the football team, helping lead them to a playoff berth in this past season.

In Mihalik’s case, his love of athletics took roots early. Starting at a young age, Mihalik began to collect baseball cards. His passion for sports took off soon after.

“I played football in high school. My father is the head football coach at Aurora High School. My great-uncle was the head football coach at Slippery Rock University for 29 years. I had always been around football my whole life. I played it, and I want to be able to coach it as well. I enjoy it thoroughly.”

In addition to participating in football, he also volunteers his time as a recreation league baseball umpire. However, Mihalik has more ties than just to the world of sports.

“I come from a family of educators. My father is an educator. My aunt and uncle are educators. On top of that, I always loved history. My grandfather would always read to me—historical books—and I always loved history.”

That situation helped Mihalik when it came to pursuing a career. After graduating from Aurora High School in 2013, Mihalik headed to Bowling Green State University where he graduated with a degree in Adolescent to Young Adult Education-Social Studies in 2017. His recent hire at Mayfield is his first teaching job.

Reading through textbooks is one thing, but Mihalik feels as if his sports background betters him as a teacher.

“In coaching, especially in football, you have to create a gameplan that is complex enough to give you the opportunity to win the game. But also, it can’t be too complex that it overwhelms your players with too much information. It’s the same thing in the classroom. I have to be able to give my kids enough information everyday for them to know the material, but I can’t give them too much so that it overwhelms them and then it ends up being a wasted day. There has to be that balance. I think that that balance is in both coaching and teaching.”

Heading into the future, Mihalik wants to continue to grow as both a teacher and a coach. He feels as if Mayfield is a great place to help him grow his skills.

“I love doing what I’m doing right now. I love just being able to get my feet wet. I’m learning so much from Coach Bandiera. He’s a great head coach and I’m learning a lot from him. Right now, I love where I’m at,” Mihalik said.