Tell us why you became a teacher

Since I was a child I always knew this would be my career path. I came from a farming background and knew that is not what I wanted to do with my life! My dad worked from sunup to sundown and we were still poor. I worked hard in school but was still an average student. That didn't stop me though. I kept reaching for my dream.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

I remember when 9-11 happened and where I was. We weren't allowed to turn on the television in our classrooms because we didn't want to scare the children. I was teaching second grade at the time in my second year of teaching. It was a scary time and I just wanted to hold all my students and let them know it is ok. The next day we had to have discussions with the students that everything would be ok and America would persevere through this storm of life.

What would you do with the $25,000?

If I won 25,000 we would have an ice cream party here at school and then I would definitely help fund my beach trips! The trips are my sanity!