“I was a newcomer teacher. I taught high school students who were just coming to this country and learning English. But it was much more than teaching them English. It was creating a community of belongingness for these new Americans, many of whom didn’t have … Continue readingWellness counselor helps traumatized community
“I’m a senior at Texas A&M, studying animation. That’s my stuff. I like drawing and writing. As a kid, you’re always doodling. For me, it never really stopped. “I didn’t take it seriously until my freshman year in college. I wanted to be an astronaut. … Continue readingPlan A: becoming an artist at Disney
“I’m from Louisiana, north of New Orleans. My husband works in the plants as a crane and forklift operator, welder and whatever else they need him to do. “He’s been traveling for work for years. When I was still teaching, I would go with him … Continue readingShe’s on the road again — and loving it
“I taught kindergarten and first grade for 30 years. I miss the children. But I don’t miss the school system. After 30 years, the system had changed so much. It was no longer fun to go to work. It was all about what shows up … Continue readingKindergarten teacher dropout enjoys retirement
“I volunteered to do some teaching in a juvenile detention center in Hemphill County one summer. That was a real eye-opener, going behind locked doors to work with those kids. The youngest was 11 or 12 and the oldest was 17. They were in there … Continue readingTeacher’s ‘calling’ extends to incarcerated youth
“When I started helping out early last school year, there was this little boy who was really struggling to read. He would read really slow. But we worked with him throughout the year. So by the time the year ended, he knew how to read … Continue readingShe gets a kick out of tutoring young students
“My husband asked me the other day, ‘At what point did you know that you wanted to be a teacher?’ I can’t remember any defining moment. It just seems like that’s all I ever wanted to be. “I was that child who at the end … Continue reading‘Becoming a teacher seemed like the natural thing’
“I think I was in my third year of teaching at Travis Elementary. My sister also was teaching there. We had a great partnership. I taught reading and writing, and she taught math and science. “One day we walked into a faculty meeting, and everybody … Continue readingBecoming U.S. citizen brings tears of joy
“I walked into a store and an employee asked, ‘Are you Miss Swamp?’ I froze like a deer in headlights and said, ‘Yes, but no one has called me that in almost 40 years.’ She said, ‘You taught my daughter in kindergarten. She is now … Continue readingMiss Swamp makes impression on kindergartners
“I knew that I wanted to become a special education teacher. But life throws you curves sometimes. I graduated high school six months pregnant with my daughter, and I got married right away. Later on, I had a son. By the time he was starting … Continue readingLife’s curves can’t stop special education teacher