Hayward: The Man, the Legend, the Real Him
Throughout Central’s history, there has been one teacher that has made an everlasting impression on every student he has taught. That teacher is Mr. Hayward. The Paws sat down with the controversial Hayward to shed some light on his retirement, personal life, and current status at Central.
Mr. Hayward has been teaching at Central for 25 years, so if you know anyone that went to Central, chances are that he taught them. After 25 years, Hayward isn’t certain when he’s going to retire, as he “[hasn’t] 100% committed to the end of this year,” but will only stop teaching when he “[doesn’t] like teaching anymore”. That hasn’t stopped him from thinking about what he might do when the time comes. When asked what retired life might have in store, Mr. Hayward says he’s interested in helping immigrants adjust to life in Canada, teaching ELL, or becoming a church minister.
For now, his hectic classes keep him busy. A rambunctious class this semester is known to refer to Hayward as “H Daddy” or “Daddy Hayward”. When asked about how he felt towards his students’ nicknames, he told us “it’s very difficult to maintain a distance while at the same time being friends with the students” and that Daddy Hayward “breaks down the walls too much”. Teaching four classes of thirty teenagers is no doubt a stressful job. Although at first he was skeptical about if he could handle another hectic class, he told us he quickly adjusted and just went with the flow. Hayward says that what’s important is to simply brush off the bad days and be able to laugh at yourself.
Another well-known fact about Hayward is that he is proudly Christian. This year he is running Central’s Christian Club to help students communicate with God and expose people to Christianity, saying it is “a way of breaking walls down between people”. Christianity is obviously a big part of his life, and Hayward tells us that he almost has his complete degree to become a church minister. He encourages others to create clubs for their own religions, so people can “get to know the other groups as well”.
Regarding all of Hayward’s signature belt buckles, he says that he’s just lazy and grabs the first belt he sees, but “each of them has a story”. His favourite one is the notorious Harley Davidson buckle, which he says he wears the most.