Jocelyn Berenice Lopez

Albert Einstein once said "It is a supreme art of the teacher to awake joy in creative expression and knowledge. "As an educator I believe that it is the teacher's responsibility to spark the fire for knowledge and allow students to ignite it. My desire for teaching has always been to provide an honest, productive, magical and most importantly safe learning environment for my students. I became a teacher to help students develop a voice through the art of writing.

My first year of teaching in a public school setting was the year Covid entered our lives. I remember feeling helpless. I decided to create a daily check-in writing activity that would help us spark vulnerable conversations as well as light silly writing prompts. As the teaching year came to a close I discovered emails that were sent to me from students stating that they appreciated all the fun they had through this activity. It was simple yet impactful. My students felt seen behind the screen.

If I were to win $25,0000 miraculously, I would use it to serve my students by creating a yearly writing contest competition. I remember as a student participating in things such as this and feeling a sense of pride for not only me but for my family. Writing is such a vital skill, our children need to continue being encouraged to develop it; $25,000 would go a long way in helping achieve just that in our community.