I chose to become a teacher because of the way my third-grade teacher made me feel seen, valued, and inspired. She created a classroom filled with joy, encouragement, and belonging. I never forgot that feeling. I became a teacher to give my students that same sense of confidence, warmth, and love of learning each day.

My most memorable moments are when students reflect the impact of our classroom. During virtual learning, a student dressed like me and filmed herself teaching her “class.” Another dressed as me for Halloween, complete with my bag, glasses, cardigan, and lanyard. I’ll also never forget a student who began the year struggling with basics (like capitalizing and punctuation) and ended it earning a perfect score on his FAST essay.

With $25,000, I would finally take care of long-postponed needs: dental care for myself, a down payment on my son’s braces, and a new roof for our home. I would also invest in my students by purchasing class sets of novels, headphones, and laptop mice to support learning. This gift would bring both stability to my family and meaningful resources to my classroom.