“First and foremost, my main goal is not teaching.” Jason Dasinger is anything but a teaching robot.

Dasinger lives by two rules: respect is mutual, and being a teacher is about more than just providing students with the standards. In his government classes, he tries not to give his students more work than necessary because he respects them, and he respects their time. In return, Dasinger asks for them to respect him back.

Coming from a background of coaching, Dasinger understands the importance of setting goals. This year, his goal for Etowah’s basketball team is to form a “brotherhood.”

“For me, it is about more than just winning games. Without that bond, our team is not really a team,” said Dasinger. When his players are off the court, he wants them to be close-knit.

“There are a lot of different kinds of goals … you do not reach those kinds of goals without other kinds of goals,” said Dasinger.  One of his goals is to create a strong bond starting at tryouts. Choosing athletes who do their homework, who are kind to others, and who support other players is exactly what the best coaches strive to do.

Dasinger’s main goal is to positively impact both his students and his players.

“There was never really a specific teacher that I always wanted to be, I just overall felt like teachers and coaches made a positive impact on my life, and I wanted to do the same,” said Dasinger.