Heather Halsall

Tell us why you became a teacher

I wanted to make a difference. Many of my students don’t have a secure home life and I wanted to be a secure safe person for them to rely on. I also wanted to be the one that didn’t give up on them. Many have troubles with traditional learning so I wanted them to know it wasn’t a learning disability but a teacher disability. They needed a teacher that knew how to teach them!

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

My most memorable experience as a teacher was seeing one of my former students out in the community, working full time and he recognized me and came right up to me and thanked me. Thanked me for not giving up on him and encouraging him to keep going. He told me that if it wasn’t for me that he wasn’t sure where he would be. I was a tad bit teary eyed after that.

What would you do with the $25,000?

Pay off some debt. Unfortunately, teachers don’t make a lot of money and I have some debt, so this money would really help reduce my debt. Not to mention, I have two kids of my own, they are still expensive, lol.