John Hunter
My first job interview, I asked the supervisor, what should I do? She said ‘What do you want to do?’

As a teacher, to be given that kind of open space, that kind of mandate-less position to be in where you can create out of the emptiness, it allowed me to create that kind of template for my students, where I could ask them, ‘What would YOU like to do today? What is your passion? What drives you?’

If the students have the interest and you build towards that, then they can come with more passion for learning.

JOHN HUNTER

at NBC's Education Nation

MEET JOHN HUNTER

A native Virginian and graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, John Hunter is an award-winning gifted teacher and educational consultant who has dedicated his life to helping children realize their full potential. Employing his background as a musician composer and filmmaker during a four-decade career as a teacher, Hunter has combined his gifted teaching and artistic talents to develop unique teaching programs using multimedia software programs in creative writing and film courses.

During his university years, he traveled and studied comparative religions and philosophy throughout Japan, India and China. It was while in India, the cradle of Gandhian thought, Hunter, intrigued by the principles of non-violence, began to think of how his profession might contribute to peace in the world.

Knowing that ignoring violence would not make it go away, how could he teach peace in an often-violent world? Accepting the reality of violence, he would seek to incorporate ways to explore harmony in various situations. This exploration would take form in the framework of a game – something that students would enjoy. Within the game data space, they would be challenged, while enhancing collaborative and communication skills.

In 1978, at the Richmond Community High School, Hunter led the first sessions of his World Peace Game. Over time, in a synchronous unfolding with the growing global focus on increasingly complex social and political conditions, the game has gained new impetus. As Hunter succinctly explains, “The World Peace Game is about learning to live and work comfortably in the unknown.”

NOTABLE AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

2020
MLK Commission Award
2020
Americans Who Tell The Truth exhibition
2019
J. William Mees Visiting Scholar
2017
Tom Tom Festival Founding Cville award
2014
John recognized as one of 50 TED2014 All-Stars
2013
John among Top 100 TED Talk Speakers
Common Ground Award Recipient
2012
Martin Institute for Teaching Excellence Fellow
Advisor to TED-Ed
Winner of GlobArt Award
GlobArt is a platform for men and women who are consciously active within our changing society.
2011
TED2011 Conference Speaker
2010
Phi Delta Kappa Outstanding Elementary Teacher Award

Center for Global Initiatives Fellow
Darden School of Business, University of Virginia

2005
Red Apple Award Winner for Innovation in Education
Virginia Piedmont Technology Council (now Charlottesville Business Innovation Council)
2004
Philip Merrill Master Teacher Mentor
The University of Maryland
1990
Outstanding Teacher of the Year Grant
Metro Richmond Foundation funded a video documentary and study guides for American students comparing Japanese and African-American cultures (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Richmond, VA)
1989
Inaugural Ellen Bayard Weedon Foundation Asian Teacher-Scholar
University of Virginia Center for the Liberal Arts

Show students that you are interested in what they love, respect them as individuals, respect what they love – and help them go deeper towards their interests.

JOHN HUNTER