My Journey Begins - 1999

I am many things to many people—a daughter, a sister, a friend, a colleague, and a teacher. While I enjoy each of these roles, the one that I consider the most important is teaching. It is more than a profession, it role that brings me the greatest joy. It is my life. As a teacher, I have been influenced by many people and varied experiences. It is the sum of these that have shaped me into the teacher that I have become and the administrator I strive to be. Everything that I have accomplished can be attributed to the teachers that I have known, the children I have taught, and the lessons that I have learned.

   Since I was a little girl playing with dolls in my bedroom, I have wanted to be a teacher, like my mother and grandmother before her. My parents remind me that at the age of two I would “play” teacher. After I started school, I continued the practice. I would line up all of my childhood friends--dolls, stuffed animals, a wooden llama--and teach them their ABCs and 1, 2, 3s for hours on end. I can remember talking to them like a teacher with commands like “Raise your hand before you speak” or “Line up quietly for recess.” I even punished them when they did not complete their schoolwork. While I was pretending to teach the children in my upstairs classroom, my mother was downstairs grading papers and preparing lesson plans. At home, I observed the endless hours of preparation necessary for teaching. Accompanying her to various school events, I was also influenced by the things I saw her do and say—drama productions, the Latin Forum, field trips, athletic events, awards’ day, graduation. As a teacher and administrator, my Mother has devoted her professional life to teaching, and I have always wanted to be just like her.

   As I started school with the goal of becoming a teacher, I volunteered to help my teachers with their “teacher tasks”--cleaning the chalkboard, filing papers, posting student work, grading spelling tests. While some of my friends accused me of being the teacher’s pet, I did not think of it in that way. I felt as though I was practicing for the future, not buttering up to my teachers. In their own way, each of my teachers influenced me to teach.

Clemson University
Clemson, South Carolina

   As a high school senior, I enrolled in the Teacher Cadet Program at Aiken High School and excitedly worked in a special needs classroom at a nearby elementary school. It was during this time that I decided to become a teacher of special needs children. While an education major at Clemson University, I spent the summers volunteering at Camp Burnt Gin, a camp for children with mental and physical disabilities. Although I was confident that special education was the right choice for me, serving as a camp counselor confirmed my decision. The children with whom I worked influenced me to become a teacher who could help other children with similar needs.

Camp Burnt Gin
A Special Camp for Special Kids

Like the teachers who influenced me through their contributions to teaching, I too think I have contributed to the profession as an advocate for all children and a model teacher. During my teaching career, I have gravitated toward children in need. As a special needs teacher, I advocated for my students and their parents. If I thought the system was not providing the best placement options and accommodations for a child, I was the first to speak up, whether or not my position was a popular one. Adverse to a one size fits all approach to teaching children to read, I utilized a variety of methods and materials, rather than scripted lessons that were favored by they system. While this was not a popular view, it was the right thing to do for the children that I taught. I also advocated for the special needs students to have the same experiences that the regular educations students had, such as overnight field trips. As a member of the Sunset Park staff, I constantly advocate for the school during my tenure there. I used every opportunity to promote the accomplishments of our students and the dedication of the staff. My colleagues often called me the school cheerleader and I looked forward to the opportunity to share the great things taking place in our “failing school”. While we did not have the highest socio-economic status, we had outstanding students who are eager to learn and parents who are eager to help their children succeed. Many teachers would have considered teaching at Sunset Park a last choice but, I consider it my first choice.