Tell us why you became a teacher

Growing up,I loved school as it was an escape from some of the tough things going on at home. Even though I loved school it was extremely hard for me. I was a good kid and well rounded so I was pushed along each year. I always loved working with special needs kids and knew someday I wanted to be a teacher. However, It wasn’t until I was in my freshman year in college when I realized I had a learning disability. At that moment I knew I would be destined to teach students with disabilities.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

My most memorable teaching experience is when I took students to Costa Rica where the students got to volunteer for the day teaching English in a one room school house. This allowed my students and I to gain perspective on a culture beyond their neighborhood of Boston. I wrote grants, raised funds in order to take students on this international trip during our school April vacation.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would start off by paying off my student loan; 4500. Then, I would take $5000 and put it towards the out of state 8th grade trip I organize each year for my school. This would support families that need additional help during fundraising. The remainder I would use to take a trip to Africa as it has always been a dream of mine. The majority of my students over the past 26 years have been African American so this would be a great trip to share with all students when returning.