LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

David Kniess was nominated by Kathleen Sison, the parent of a student.

Mr. Kniess has taught German at various levels for several decades. He opens up the world to students by offering high school German level 1 to them starting in 8th grade. Eighth-graders at two local middle schools can get a dedicated school bus to Kingwood High School to take German class before riding back to their regular eighth-grade classes.

This not only marks the beginning of high-school academic rigor in a youth's life, but it also sets a child's sights on global ways of thinking. With great rapport, Mr. Kniess not only teaches young people a modern language, but he challenges them to hear about global topics that reframe the concept of "community and citizenship." He does this with casual humor, relatable adolescent themes, and an enthusiastic challenge to participate in an annual citywide German high school competition called Houstonfest that makes it to state competitions (Texas State German Contest). 

Mr. Kniess says he became a teacher to make a positive difference in the lives of students, both in his community and all over the world. While his passion is the German language and culture, he encourages his students to embrace all cultures and languages. Mr. Kniess has inspired a dozen students to participate in short- and long-term Rotary Youth Exchange programs. Those students have studied in five or six different countries, getting other students excited about opportunities to live abroad and represent the U.S. -- and Texas -- as diplomats.

With group role-playing, video-making, and hot-topic debates, Mr. Kniess lets shy students unfurl their personalities at their own pace and leads gregarious students to step out of their comfort zones. Once a year, he and his wife drive a school bus to get students to the Houston Opera in evening finery. He invites his own high school German teacher along for the ride. Mr. Kniess appeals to world travelers with an invitation to host Rotary Club international students and participate in an exchange trip. He also helped a local German-heritage church raise awareness of German culture and raise funds for Hurricane Harvey families with a student-led culture booth at the church's inaugural Oktoberfest in 2017.