When he’s not in the classroom, Phil is usually working with his Angus, Maine-Angus, Simmental-Plus, and Hereford show cattle at his home in Andersonville. He still enjoys showing the cattle — something he has done since he was a child — and has passed down his love of the pastime to his son, Daniel, a doctor of physical therapy,, and daughter, Chelsea, a food scientist, and now their grandchildren, Marley and Pierce. The farm, too, is an extension of his classroom, he says.

“A lot of kids over the years have come up to the farm and worked,” he says. “Often, I would sit with them in the hallway of the barn, and just talk about life and families, and working through any difficult times they were having.”

Phil plans to share highlights from his agricultural teaching career in a book that he hopes to complete after he retires. He already has a publisher lined up. The seed for the project was sown back when he first began teaching. His mentor, the well-known University of Tennessee Ag Education professor Dr. John Todd, advised Phil to “write stuff down that happens.”

Phil did just that. For a while, he kept notes in a notebook. He later transitioned to maintaining his list digitally on his computer. He didn’t capture every detail, but he would focus on what he thought was important and catalog the stories for each year he has taught.

“I bailed a kid out of jail, once,” he says. “He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was a good kid but got caught up and was guilty by association. His daddy wouldn't bail him out. So, the student talked the deputies into letting him call me.”

Another student stands out because he only applied to one school for graduation — Princeton. Phil was skeptical, advising him to apply to other schools, too, but the student was adamant — Princeton was his plan. A few weeks later, the young man returned and flashed an acceptance letter from the prestigious school that included notification of “a full-ride” scholarship.

“Students amaze me,” he says.

Scattered throughout the classroom, there is also an assortment of handcrafted owls, harkening to his role as FFA advisor and his position by the owl during opening and closing ceremonies. The owl symbolizes the wisdom and knowledge of the instructor, and his or her role as an experienced, guiding presence to the student-led organization. It’s a role that Phil has embraced with enthusiasm.

“I’ve had kids go on to become doctors, lawyers, engineers, and nurses. Others own their own businesses,” says Phil. “But they all have learned life skills here [in our CTE] that will help them their entire lives.”