Focus on Mr. Akins!

                  Halfway down the back hallway of Gulf Shores Middle school is where you can find eighth grade science teacher, Mr. Tim Akins. Some students have probably heard rumors about Mr. Akins being a hard, strict teacher, but others who have also heard those rumors have had the chance to prove them wrong by being in his class.

                  One of those students is Sara Peralta, eighth grader, who said this about being in his class, "I had heard a lot of different stuff about [Mr. Akins] from my friends in high school that have had him before. They said he could be unfair and strict, but I was more worried about how hard they said the class was. When I saw him on my schedule, I was kind of scared, but it turned out that he is just a big goofy redneck that turns out to be an awesome teacher!"

There are a lot of interesting things that people don't know about Mr. Akins. One example is, after he graduated from Auburn University, he went to the University of South Alabama to do cancer research. When he isn't playing mad scientist and experimenting on things, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Tracy, and their three kids, Laura, 12, Olivia, 4, and Braxton, 3.

 After someone has met Mr. Akins they can tell that he isn't a normal guy. He likes to think of himself as a "major redneck,' based on the fact that he loves to fish, hunt, and watch Auburn football. Also, his favorite colors are orange and blue. His favorite present he has ever received were season tickets to the Auburn University football games.

 One of Mr. Akins best friends, fellow science teacher, and his neighbor on the back hall, Mr. Wil Tuggle said, "To have come from Boonville, AL. he is a pretty smart guy. He also isn't a bad fisherman, he's an average hunter, and a good teacher. He has a good sense of humor which makes him a pretty good neighbor." 

Although he does enjoy teaching, his least favorite part is the paperwork that comes with it. Other than reading science books, he enjoys reading more of the history part of the bible. He does not have a favorite verse, but his favorite chapters come from the book of Mathew, chapters 4-6. He said regarding those chapters, "they focus more on things that preachers rarely preach about because they focus more on things that people don't want to hear about, but I find them very interesting."

Hayley Healan, an eighth grader at GSMS, said this about Mr. Akins, "He is a much better teacher than I thought he would be, after seeing more than just the redneck side of him. I never thought that I could learn so much stuff in one class, but he definitely proved me wrong on that! I'm really glad I have him as a teacher!"

By: Ashton Ray; 8^th

Timothy Akins Gulf Shore Middle Schools 8th grade science teacher.
Photo By: Caroline Tilley