Connect Tell us why you became a teacher

I didn’t actually apply for the job. I got a call to interview and gratefully found my calling! Once I became a teacher I immediately knew I wanted to be the kind of teacher I always needed.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

My most memorable teaching experience was during my first grad of teaching when a student who had lost both of her parents six months apart at the age of 8 asked me to join her for a Mother’s Day lunch. That was when the magnitude of the impact teachers have the opportunity to make became the most clear to me. She still sends me a “Happy Mother’s Day” card or text to this day—thirteen years later.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would give a $500 scholarship to two graduating seniors, take my students on a field trip, restock my “wellness corner” which provides mental health tools and resources for my students, give a donation to our local food bank, and save the rest.