Brittany Barrett

Tell us why you became a teacher

In high school, I had two very different teachers. One went out of her way to differentiate instruction to ensure everyone was successful no matter their ability. The other tore students down and made them feel incapable. I walked into the 2nd teachers room my senior year for her calculus class, the only class I needed to graduate with special honors, and she looked at me and laughed. She said, “this class is for smart people, go change your schedule.” I was humiliated and knew then I wanted t….

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

I had a student with learning disabilities who struggled in every aspect of education. His mom’s greatest fear was that he would never pass the necessary assessments to graduate with a diploma. I worked through countless hours of remediation with him and the greatest day of my life was looking his mom in the eyes and telling her that her son had met all the requirements to graduate with his peers and receive a traditional diploma.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would like to use the money for updated resources in my classroom. The school district only pays for resources that impacts a wide student population. I need resources to accommodate students with very specific academic disabilities in order to give them the best chance possible for success.