Connect Tell us why you became a teacher

I have always wanted to be a teacher. As a young girl, I would play school and pretend to teach my stuffed animals. As a teenager, I was a tutor after school. As an adult, I earned my teaching certificate and love teaching kindergarten. I now have my doctorate in educational leadership. I would love to get a job at the university level and help train the next generation of teachers.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

I am passionate about hands on learning experiences and making learning meaningful. The best and most memorable teaching experience is actually a project that I am currently working on. I have a hydroponic garden system. My students and I are growing 150 heads of lettuce. We planted the seeds and watched them grow. We transplanted the seedlings to the hydroponic garden system. In 28 days we will harvest the lettuce. I love teaching my students where food comes from seed to salad!

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would love to use the $25,000 to help pay off some of my student loan debt. I have my doctorate. It would be wonderful if I could have some of that debt taken care of.