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Although I spent 26 years paying my bills as a teacher, it was only to fund my love of music. I have played drums for 40 years, and was the first white person to play professional Congolese music-singing in the local language. Not only did I write all the lyrics in a myriad of Congolese languages, I wrote and orchestrated all the music, I played drums in the studio, engineered my own songs, and coached/orchestrated all of the instruments.…Although I spent 26 years paying my bills as a teacher, it was only to fund my love of music. I have played drums for 40 years, and was the first white person to play professional Congolese music-singing in the local language. Not only did I write all the lyrics in a myriad of Congolese languages, I wrote and orchestrated all the music, I played drums in the studio, engineered my own songs, and coached/orchestrated all of the instruments.

James Dolecki

Instructional Designer, Content Designer, Designer, +2

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Although I spent 26 years paying my bills as a teacher, it was only to fund my love of music. I have played drums for 40 years, and was the first white person to play professional Congolese music-singing in the local language. Not only did I write all the lyrics in a myriad of Congolese languages, I wrote and orchestrated all the music, I played drums in the studio, engineered my own songs, and coached/orchestrated all of the instruments.…Although I spent 26 years paying my bills as a teacher, it was only to fund my love of music. I have played drums for 40 years, and was the first white person to play professional Congolese music-singing in the local language. Not only did I write all the lyrics in a myriad of Congolese languages, I wrote and orchestrated all the music, I played drums in the studio, engineered my own songs, and coached/orchestrated all of the instruments.

Available to hire

Although I spent 26 years paying my bills as a teacher, it was only to fund my love of music. I have played drums for 40 years, and was the first white person to play professional Congolese music-singing in the local language. Not only did I write all the lyrics in a myriad of Congolese languages, I wrote and orchestrated all the music, I played drums in the studio, engineered my own songs, and coached/orchestrated all of the instruments.

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Intermediate

Language

English

Fluent

Lingala

Fluent

Shona

Intermediate

Swahili

Intermediate

Spanish; Castilian

Intermediate

French

Advanced

Arabic

Beginner

Work Experience

IB Psychology Teacher at West Islip NY School District

September 1, 2025 - October 30, 2025

Design, implement, and assess IB Psychology using IBO resources; deliver instruction remotely; collaborate with teacher of record and administration; cover Biological, Cognitive, and Sociocultural influences on behavior; provide daily formative feedback; also delivered 10th Grade World History and Modern World History instruction remotely and created/formatted assessments.

Geography/Economics/Government Teacher - Remote at EL Wright Middle School / Westwood HS, Richland 2 District, Columbia SC

May 1, 2025 - May 1, 2025

Design, differentiate, and implement lessons per SC Standards; deliver instruction remotely; collaborate with administration and staff; taught units on South America, Africa, Europe, Middle East, and Asia; taught map reading and coordinates; covered Economics concepts (supply/demand, scarcity, free market principles) and basic macro/micro topics; introduced financial literacy and basic investing concepts.

Social Studies Teacher at Khartoum American School, Khartoum, Sudan

October 7, 2022 - October 7, 2022

Designed, implemented, and differentiated lesson plans for grades 6-12 per AERO standards; created project-based technology curriculum; developed electives (Tribes of Africa, African Culture); supported ELL students; collaborated cross-curricularly with English teachers; integrated research skills and multi-source projects.

Social Studies / English Teacher at American International School of Lomé, Lomé, Togo

January 1, 2018 - January 1, 2018

Design and differentiate cross-curricular lessons for grades 6-12; supported ELL students; delivered World History and Geography content; integrated language development with social studies; coordinated with staff on cross-curricular projects.

Social Studies / English Teacher at American International School of Lomé, Lomé, Togo

January 1, 2018 - January 1, 2018

Taught 6/7 English and Geography with overlapping differentiated curriculum; emphasized vocabulary development for ELL students; built foundational geography skills (map reading, coordinates) and cultural content.

Social Studies / English Teacher at American School of Douala, Douala, Cameroon

January 1, 2017 - January 1, 2017

Designed and implemented lesson plans per AERO/California standards; supported international students; collaborated with staff on cross-cultural projects; conducted assessments and provided feedback to students and parents.

6-8th English / AP English (10th grade) at Modern English School, Cairo, Egypt

January 1, 2009 - January 1, 2009

Instructed grammar, vocabulary, writing, and literary analysis; delivered AP English (10th grade) in a one-year emergency contract; guided students in analytical writing and textual analysis.

Middle School English / World History / US History at The American School of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, D.R. Congo

January 1, 2006 - January 1, 2006

Taught Middle School English; Geography; World History; US History; introduced basic research skills; taught African languages and culture; supported ELL students.

7th/8th Grade English / SDAIE / Corrective Reading at Sam Brannan Middle School, Sacramento, CA

January 1, 2003 - January 1, 2003

Instructed English proficiency; integrated Corrective Reading to improve fluency and comprehension; prepared students for mainstream classes; taught World History and US History with SDAIE strategies.

Social Studies / English Teacher at Luther Burbank High School, Sacramento, CA

January 1, 2005 - January 1, 2005

Taught 10th-grade World History; 11th-grade US History and SDAIE; supported literacy and research skills; integrated technology to enhance learning.

11th/12th Grade US History / 12th Grade Psychology / Economics / Government at Sacramento City Unified School District – John F. Kennedy High School, Sacramento, CA

June 1, 2008 - June 1, 2008

Taught US History, Psychology, Economics, Government; utilized map-reading skills, primary source analysis, MLA formatting; implemented diverse instructional strategies to meet varied learner needs.

12th Grade US History / Economics / Government at Sacramento City Unified School District – John F. Kennedy High School, Sacramento, CA

January 1, 2015 - January 1, 2015

Taught US History, Economics, and Government; supported critical thinking and comparative analysis; prepared students for college-level research and writing.

Summer School Supervisor at Sacramento City Unified School District

June 1, 2015 - June 1, 2015

Oversaw summer school operations, enrolled students in credit recovery, supervised classes, managed discipline, and ensured transcript integrity and credit transfer.