Meet Brother Eric Henderson, a long time Lasallian Brother and member of the Central Catholic community.

Henderson first realized he wanted to become a Christian Brother when he was in high school. He recalls how the Brothers not only educated but also sought to establish relationships with the students.

He says, “I kept thinking, ‘I wonder if this is something I could do in the future.’ At some point, I decided, ‘yeah, let me give it a try.’” His parents were supportive, and he decided to join the Brotherhood.

He also spoke on why he chose to teach chemistry. He has always had a penchant for trying to understand how things work.

Although he enjoys biology and physics, he is drawn to chemistry because of its hands-on nature. He says, “When [your teacher] explains things, you can always get a sense of how they’re interacting. That drew me. I had a flair for doing things with cars, motors, fixing stuff, taking things apart, and hopefully getting them back together again.”

He speaks of a teacher he had in high school who taught him biology, chemistry, and physics. “He was such a good teacher that I thought, ‘This is what I think I’d like, if I were trying to become a brother, this is what I’d like to teach.’” His curiosity about the natural world and all its interlocking pieces drew him to a love of chemistry, which he continues to teach today.

Coming to Central Catholic, Henderson says that he felt something was different within two weeks. “I can see the Lasallian spirit in the things that we do,” he says, describing the relationships between students and faculty.

Henderson’s ideas on teaching are deeply ingrained in the Lasallian tradition. He has great admiration for De La Salle and says that “what he decided to do years ago and help his teachers do with kids, it still goes today. I mean, you look at his writings, and it’s like he must have written that a week ago.”

Henderson recalls an elderly Brother from a different school, who, although not teaching classes, continued to tutor students. “I said to him one day, ‘What gets you up in the morning?’ and he just really quickly, right off the bat, he just said, ‘My students.’ I think that happens here, for us, as the Brothers.”

He finished the interview by saying “I’m very happy here, and I’m fortunate to be able to continue teaching […] We’re dedicated to working with these students and teaching. It gets you going in the morning.”

Brother Eric teaches chemistry in the STEM building and has been teaching at Central Catholic for 10 years.