Jenn Eselin

Tell us why you became a teacher

I never went through my life saying I would be a teacher. I went to school for science and after working in the science field after my bachelor's degree, I felt like I could do more with my life. I was in a job where I was teaching other adults and I discovered that I wanted to do this full time. Teaching found me and I realized that this is what I loved to do. I go to work each day in a middle school and not only teach what I love, but I learn from my students and enjoy being with them.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

Teaching for so many years, nobody could just name one memory. I am proud of my students and to have them come back to me years later as parents or my coworkers, makes me proud to know that I helped them get to where they are today. I always tell my students that we are a big happy family and I treat my kids as my family. They will come back and share their memories of my class with me and I am happy to be apart of their lives. These are my cherished memories of teaching.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would like to pay off some of my debt and then let's face it, I know I will be buying things for my classroom. I buy "prizes" for when I have a substitute and end of the year gifts for my 100+ students. I would like to get some STEM "toys" to use in my classroom that I can't buy with the school budget. If I have some money left over, it would go to my own children's activities since they are involved in extracurricular activities all year and I'm just their unpaid "Uber" driver.