I became a teacher because I love to learn. I have always enjoyed learning and as I have gotten older, I realized I loved helping other people learn. I enjoy getting to see when other people start to get curious or excited about learning something new because you get to watch them grow and change as they learn. The moment when a student starts asking questions or proposing new ideas is when I get most excited as a teacher because it means they are excited to be there not just that they have to.

As a first-year teacher it has been an eye opening and powerful experience. I am learning new things about the field, myself, and my students every day. I am in entomology, the study of bugs, and my most memorable moment from teaching so far is the day I found a wasp in my classroom. While the student were terrified, I was ecstatic, I took the opportunity to share my passion with the students and now I do a bug of the week which students are always excited about and cannot wait to hear about it.

If I were to receive the $25,000 it would be life changing. The first thing that I would do is pay off the rest of my student loans so that I can be debt free. After paying off my loans, I would purchase a new car because I currently drive a 24 year old car that has many issues needing fixed. This would remove a lot of stress and allow me to focus more on my future and my career as an educator rather than stressing and worry about these things.