The basics:

First, my name is Zach (Zachary) Vander Veen. I think my dad first called me ZJ (middle name is John) and a few family friends have always referred to me by that name. When I went to the University of Michigan they gave me the prefix zjv – which soon became zjvv – and I’ve held on to it for cyber reasons (short, sweet, and to the point).

I’m a tall, skinny white guy who has roots in the mid-west but found himself teaching in the inner-city of Houston, Texas for 5 years. In fact, for my first two years of teaching I taught Texas history, something which never ceased to be amusing to my family back home. You should never have a Yankee teaching Texas history – we just don’t get the Texas pride thing (I personally always thought William Travis, the fella who decided to stay in the Alamo, was a bit of a fool).

Currently I teach America History to 8 ^th graders in Cincinnati, Ohio. Education is a profession that I adore and, frankly, never see myself leaving. Every day of every year, something new occurs.

The most important person in my life: Renee (aka Gwenavuire or Ren) Vander Veen. This heartbreakingly beautiful woman agreed to marry me back in 2001 and life has been all the richer because of this.

We both love to travel, and as the pictures demonstrate, have been over many parts of the world. We share a passion for missions (although, awkwardly, for different parts of the world…something we figure God will work out in His good timing) and a commitment to our faith (how else do you have a marriage work?). Renee comes from a line of preachers (both sets of grandparents were Nazarene Ministers) and holidays always have some cheerful (I know, that’s an odd adjective to use) discussion on the up and coming end times.

When it comes to technology, I’m learning to be a geek. Most of my interests is rooted in the desire to actually use technology in the classroom. I suspect that if you walk into the majority of classrooms in America, you’d see 1 or 2 computers gathering dust while students fill out tedious worksheets from a 1989 textbook adoption. I’m self-taught with just about everything, although I’ve recently begun a Masters in Instructional Technology.