Mr. Michael Harrison has been a Wildecat since 1978 when he was enrolled as a freshman at the Lake, a school which was then only seven years old. Now, 45 years later with 30 excellent years of teaching under his belt, Mr. Harrison has decided to bring the Wilde Lake chapter of his life to a close.
As an alum, coach, and teacher, Mr. Harrison has spent the majority of his life within Wilde Lake. Mr. Harrison graduated from Wilde Lake and has dedicated his life to the students and athletes of the community since then.
During his time as a student at the Lake, Mr. Harrison was a passionate football player. He graduated from Wilde Lake in 1982 and headed down to North Carolina State University to pursue a career as an Air Force pilot. With a major in Engineering, Mr. Harrison soon realized this career path wasn’t for him.
Mr. Harrison decided to take a break from college and was soon encouraged to assistant coach for the Wilde Lake football team by his former coach Doug Duvall.
“Doug Duvall coached me when I was here, and then I coached for him for 20 years,” he said. “When he retired, I replaced him as head coach. He was the motivation for me to come [back to Wilde Lake].”
Over six years of coaching made Mr. Harrison realize a Wildecat is exactly who he is supposed to be.
“Through the coaching process, I realized that I wanted to work with students and athletes,” he said. “I didn’t want to go anywhere else. I never wanted to be anywhere else. Wilde Lake is where I belong.”
With this new mindset, Mr. Harrison decided to take night classes at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to get his teaching degree. In the meantime, he continued to coach and worked as a substitute teacher at the Lake.
In 1993, Mr. Harrison received his teaching certificate and started teaching Computer Programming at the Lake, where he has taught for the past 30 years. Throughout his time as a teacher, he has taught Geometry, Math Analysis, Computer Science classes, Physical Education, Leadership, and has served as the Math department head and Math instructional support teacher.
Mr. Harrison’s contributions go beyond the classroom. Aside from working as the assistant and head football coach for some time, he has also coached Boys’ and Girls’ lacrosse, softball, and has served as the athletic director several times.
Mr. Harrison’s extensive contributions to the Wilde Lake community are obvious to those around him. Fellow staff member and daughter Ms. Kourtney Harrison is the assistant manager of the Jim Rouse Theatre (JRT). Before transferring to work in the JRT in May of 2024, Ms. Harrison worked alongside her dad in the Wilde Lake Math department for seven years and says it has been inspiring to see his impact on the community in his 30 years of teaching.
Not only has Mr. Harrison influenced the Wilde Lake community, but he has influenced his daughter’s life as well.
Similarly to her dad, Ms. Harrison graduated from Wilde Lake and then attended Towson University. After graduating from Towson, Ms. Harrison came back to Wilde Lake to work as a Math teacher and to coach the softball team.
“A lot of people would look at me and think I’m just following in my dad’s footsteps, but I think he has set up a path that I would want to follow in his footsteps, which I think is inspiring,” she said.
Ms. Harrison says one of her favorite memories is Wilde Lake winning the football state championship when she was in high school with her dad as the head coach in 2010.
“He was the head football coach the whole time I was in high school and they won the state championship in 2010, which was the last year that my sister and I were both in high school together,” she said. “That was a really cool family experience.”
Ms. Harrison and her dad have continued to make new memories as co-workers. She says for seven years, they have eaten lunch together every day and enjoy the time to hang out and talk, or even enjoy each other’s silence.
The Harrisons’ connection to the Lake only makes Mr. Harrison’s retirement that much harder because, as Ms. Harrison says, the school has “always had a special place in their hearts.”
“I remember growing up in the school building, so it’s been really cool to always know that Wilde Lake is a part of our family,” said Ms. Harrison. “That connection to Wilde Lake has been a part of my dad’s life since he was a little kid, so it’s going to be hard knowing that my dad isn’t in the building every day.”
Mr. Harrison will be missed by the students of Wilde Lake as well, as his Geometry student and sophomore Joycel Ocasio says Mr. Harrison is very dedicated to his work and thorough with his students.
“He’s very good at explaining and if you have questions, you can just go up to him and he’ll help you stick with it until you understand,” Joycel said.
Joycel’s view of Mr. Harrison’s teaching style reflects what he values most, as Mr. Harrison says his favorite part of teaching is watching students understand new concepts.
“I love seeing the expression on students’ faces when they get it,” Mr. Harrison said. “When you can see in the eyes and the face that a student has an understanding, that’s always been my motivation.”
Despite opportunities to teach at other schools, Mr. Harrison knew Wilde Lake was exactly where he was supposed to be, and the students at the Lake made him sure about this.
“I love the diversity of students at Wilde Lake. I love the intellectual curiosity of students at Wilde Lake. The willingness of students to engage in their own learning has kept me here this long,” he said.
Wilde Lake has moved buildings since Mr. Harrison was a freshman, but he says Wilde Lake’s appreciation for diversity has persevered for 45 years.
“The overall spirit and the way that Wilde Lake has embraced diversity has always remained the same, even since when I was back in high school,” he said.
Mr. Harrison says in his 30 years of teaching, “there was never a day he didn’t want to come to work.”
“If I was having a bad day, the students would be able to change that,” said Mr. Harrison. “Every day at Wilde Lake is a little bit different. This is a wild place, but if you’re willing to roll with some of the ups and downs, [being here] is so gratifying.”
After 30 fulfilling years of teaching at Wilde Lake, and even more years since he returned to coach the football team, Mr. Harrison has decided it is finally time for his chapter at the Lake to come to an end.
Mr. Harrison says he is excited for this new chapter of his life, where he will get to go on more vacations and do work around his house. Despite his excitement, Mr. Harrison says he will miss several features of the Lake that he has grown accustomed to over the years.
“I’m going to miss the staff and the students,” he said. “I’ve formed lasting friendships with people, and I won’t see them daily like I do now, [which I will] miss the most.”
In his absence, Mr. Harrison hopes that the Wilde Lake community continues to flourish as it always has and that the students continue to pursue their education above all else.
“The greatest strength any person can have is the willingness to always embrace new experiences,” Mr. Harrison said. “Education is a lifelong journey. [I hope the students] continue to learn even after they leave Wilde Lake.” I didn’t want to go anywhere else. I never wanted to be anywhere else. Wilde Lake is where I belong. — Mr. Michael Harrison
