I became a teacher because people once told me I wouldn’t amount to anything. That story sticks. So I chose to be the ‘pebble in the water’. One steady voice. One ripple at a time. Now I stand in front of students who doubt themselves and refuse to let that lie win.

For 10 years in Hamilton (Ohio), I pushed 5th graders to launch rockets, build robots, and do “the big things”. This year: new school, new role (k-6 art), same ole Mr. B. I challenged all students to collaborate in building a 6-foot bulldog statue for homecoming. They laughed. Then they built “Big Blue.” When it walked down Main Street, pride replaced doubt. Now even kindergarteners say, “We can do big things.” That belief is the real project.

If awarded $25,000, I would endow a fund with the local community foundation to equip under-resourced classrooms with STEAM supplies. Tools spark ideas. Ideas build thinkers who question, design, and lead with courage. Access should not depend on zip code. This fund would place materials in students’ hands and belief in their minds, creating TSUNAMIS from ripples that outlast me and expand opportunity for generations.