Chad Lewis and Madeline Lewis '24

Chad Lewis is a Sergeant with UNCW Police Department. His daughter Madeline (Maddie) will graduate in December with a degree in elementary education from UNCW’s Watson College.

Sgt Lewis joined the military police reserves after high school.  In 1988, when he became old enough to enter law enforcement, he joined the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office where he served for 30 years before retiring and beginning a new role at UNCW. Over the course of his career, he has worked on patrol, crime prevention, tactical commander, and as a school resource officer (SRO) in elementary, middle and high schools. He also teaches civil disturbance at the North Carolina Justice Academy, the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office and the NC Samarcand Training Academy.

“I love helping people,” he said. “Law enforcement isn’t just writing tickets and arresting people. At UNCW, I get to do more of things I enjoy like teaching kids about safety.”

Maddie is the youngest of his six children. She graduated from Coastal Christian High School and said she chose to become a teacher because it allows her to work with kids and help them to grow and reach their potential.

“I remember my second-grade teacher and the impact she had on me and my learning,” she said. “I am very grateful for her and can only hope to impact my future students in the same way.”

Maddie is currently completing her internship in a second grade classroom at Southwest Elementary School in Jacksonville. She said she has enjoyed being at UNCW where she can see her dad more often, and her courses, field experiences and internship have helped her prepare for her future career.

“My field experiences have taught me what it really looks like to be an effective teacher. I learned how to teach standards while also teaching students how to become better leaders and role models,” she said. “During my internship, I have met many wonderful collaborative staff members that I have learned from. I have also met many wonderful students who remind me each day why I chose to be a teacher.”

Chad says he was initially surprised with Maddie’s choice of a teaching career.

“Teachers are underpaid, overworked and under-estimated in their ability all the time,” he said. “In my experience here at UNCW I would say that teaching and nursing are the two curricula that are the most like boot camp. They work to filter out, pile on stuff and add on stress to see the heart of the person and to see if you have what it takes to do the job. But Maddie has always been determined. Once she decided what she wanted to do, she jumped in with both feet. She really wants to be a teacher.”

After graduating, Maddie hopes to teach kindergarten somewhere in New Hanover county, and eventually return to college for a master’s degree in education. To others considering a teaching career, she said, “If you love what you do, you can do anything. It is a lot of hard work but every bit of it is worth it when you can build connections with students and help them grow. I look forward to teaching in my own classroom and will continue to do my best to ensure that every student can be seen, known, and heard.”