Susan

Tell us why you became a teacher

My great-grandmother was a teacher in a rural one-room school house and once married was forbidden to teach because that's the way things were then. I went to college as a single mother and wanted to give back the Joy to other college students which I found priceless. The more I learned the more I knew I needed to learn. It's an endless cycle of learning, sharing and helping others who wish to better their lives, and the world they live in.

Tell us about your most memorable teaching experience

Right after COVID, I had a student who was struggling to understand an assignment and I asked him to step out of the classroom and talked to him privately to see if I could help him. He didn't want to appear "stupid or dumb" in front if his peers. I reached out to his advisor and we came up with a plan so he could manage his angst and frustration and quietly exit the class if he felt overwhelmed. He apologized to me for having a meltdown and completed all the coursework on time and earned a B+.

What would you do with the $25,000?

I would give back to others who need help with their education. I would offer two modest scholarships for students in high school who are low-income and one for a single parent who needs assistance to attend college. The rest I would use to complete my memoir and take six month off from teaching as an adjunct. This memoir would hopefully help teens who are dealing with depression and parents and friends of those who lost someone to suicide.