After graduating from high school, he earned his bachelor's degree in 1999 in elementary education from Lincoln University in Oxford, Pa. He also completed a master's in leadership and teaching from the College of Notre Dame in Maryland in December 2007.
Wooden was hired in Harford County by chance, he said. When school system officials visited Lincoln University, he and a friend received a mock interview, he said. The next day, Harford County school officials called the two young men and shortly afterward hired both of them, he said.
Teaching has given Wooden a chance to help children and other teachers, he said.
"I try to empower children to be successful, and I try to empower teachers to put forth their best effort to educate children," he said.
He's a wonderful teacher, said Pam Peterson, a physical education teacher at George D. Lisby.
"Mr. Wooden teaches the children to think outside the box," Peterson said. "He is always debating them and asking questions about their answers. He isn't trying to prove them wrong; he's just trying to make them think about why they're right."
Francine Higbee, also a fifth-grade teacher at the school, nominated Wooden for Teacher of the Year because he inspires everyone around him, she said.
"He is a great teacher," said Higbee, a 17-year veteran teacher. "He works at the school from sun up to sun down. He mentors teachers and gets the students excited about learning."
Wooden shares his life experiences to show the children he knows where they are coming from, he said.
"Many students that attend this school come from poverty, and they live in unsafe neighborhoods," he said. "The lives of some of these children are very different than the typical child. It's totally different when kids have their own parents raising them. Many of these kids have grandparents raising them, and so did I."
Wooden shares the story of his younger brother, Taris Wooden, who was murdered about four years ago in Philadelphia, he said.
"I tell the students that my brother was murdered because he didn't make good choices," he said. "He chose friends who were not a good influence. I tell the students about my brother to try to get them to understand how important it is to pick the right group of friends."
To reach even more students, he heads two after school programs for at-risk boys.
