Laura Mahoney

Tell us why you became a teacher

From a young age, I knew that I wanted to be some kind of helper- a teacher, or doctor, or nurse, or therapist. While I was pursuing my Bachelor's degree in Psychology, with the goal of becoming a therapist, I did an internship in an early intervention program. I enjoyed working with the young children in the program so much that I decided to pursue my Master's degree in Education.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

One of my favorite memories is having a race against my second grade students. They knew that I am an avid runner, and they wanted to challenge me to a race. The kids had been struggling a bit with their focus because we were in the final weeks of the school year, so I made them a deal- if they focused on their work for the rest of the week, then we could have a race on Friday. They kept their end of the bargain and we had our race- two of my students beat me, and the whole class was thrilled!

What would you do with the $25,000?

I am really into gardening, and I run the Garden Club at my school. I would love to use some of the money toward professional development around gardening and mental health for students. I would also like to use some of the money to expand my own garden, and to travel with my family!