Nichaleen Phillips

Teaching is in my blood, really it is! I come from a long line of educators! My Mom taught all elementary grades and title one over the years, my Dad taught building trades to high school students, my Aunt was a middle school teacher, my Grandmother was a school secretary and my Great grandmother taught in a one room schoolhouse. Watching all these people I love and respect so dearly, change the lives of thousands of kids over the years lit the fire of teaching in my heart.

My first year teaching, I was hired in a small, very rural, northern Michigan school. One of my students came in smelling of urine, so one day I quietly asked her why. She told me she was scared of the dark and her potty was OUTSIDE! The family didn't have running water and went to an aunts for baths 1x a week! I was devastated so I started our class changing room. I bought clothes, toothbrushes, combs wipes, anything they'd need to freshen up once they got to school.

I'd spend some on my classroom of course, I am in another small rural school so we don't have much. The rest I would use to help send my boys to college. One wants to write, one wants to be in cyber security and the other wants to be a crime scene investigator and help solve cold cases.