Brianna Whiteside

Tell us why you became a teacher

My teachers saved my life. When I felt like I had no one who understood me, I knew that I could go to my teachers and they would know how to comfort me and make me feel like a human again. I wanted to be able to be that for a student. School-age me needed someone to be there for her, and my teachers were those people. I have always wanted to pay it forward and be that person for my students.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

I had one student that never spoke, not even for attendance; she would simply raise her hand. She did all of her work and it was always immaculate. I never pushed her, never tried to force her to speak. I made sure she knew she belonged in my room and that when she was ready to use her voice we would all be ready to hear it. One day, she volunteered to present a project in front of the whole class before anyone else. She did amazingly. I will never forget that.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would start by making sure my mom's bills are paid off. Then, I would use it to buy supplies for my classroom so that I never have to tell a student that I ran out of pencils and couldn't afford to get more until the end of the month. I would cater at least one lunch for my admin team, because I have the best admin in the country, and I would make sure my students all had food and personal hygiene items if they needed them. Anything left over would go towards renovating my house.