Tell us why you became a teacher

I was a para educator in a Preschool Classroom when I decided to become a teacher. I love that our curriculum taught the students how to learn through their play. I loved how developmentally appropriate was for that age group and how much growth students could reach just through playing. As I taught and got my teaching degree, I found more and more fulfillment in the progress that students can make and seeing them become so independent in their skills that it keeps me coming back year to year.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

I was working with a student on the Autism Spectrum Disorder who was mostly non-speaking. I remember struggling throughout the year to help him progress in his skills, especially his play skills with peers. We would work and work with him to want to play with other students, but he wasn't interested. One day, we had wagon out that he was playing in, and a peer climbed in to play with him. The student got a huge smile on his face and I could see we made progress in that moment with him.

What would you do with the $25,000?

The first thing I would do is pay off a trip I am planning on taking to development my skills as a teacher to Kenya. We will be visiting local schools and learning some professional development on how students learn in their schools there. The second thing I would put the money toward would be to help my student who is a full time wheelchair user, remodel a bathroom in our house to make it more accessible for her. This would provide her with more independence in her life.