Dedication

When I was 8 years old, I made a promise to myself to become a teacher in honor of my stellar second grade teacher and my grandparents (of who 3 out of 4were teachers). My second grade teacher captured my heart through her love of reading and deep understanding of my individual needs.  She inspired me to love learning not just in second grade, but also for the rest of my life. To me, that is the mark of a superior teacher.

I was so inspired by her that, on career day, when she assigned us to dress paper dolls to look like what we wanted to be when we grew up, I made a doll to look like her.  Ever since that day, I have kept that doll and that dream to be just like her.

Her inspiration was so deep that I kept my focus on my dream to be a teacher through high school and college.  I graduated in May of 2012 from Kent State University summa cum laude with a degree in Early Childhood Education.  It was then, 14 years after second grade that I looked up my second grade teacher.  Though she had retired, the elementary school was still able to pass my email along to her.  After waiting a few weeks, I finally received an email from her and an offer to meet for coffee! Seeing her and sharing teacher talk and resources with her was a dream come true.

Not only am I living my dream of being a teacher, but I have also kept the passion for learning that she gave me.  As I have been looking back on my career as a student and looking ahead to my career as a teacher, I have noticed that I have always been a teacher.  I always offered to help my peers that were struggling.  I often started study groups in college.  Since my junior year of high school, I have been employed as a tutor.  Teaching is so deeply engrained in my nature that I have always been and will always be a teacher to those in my life.  I believe that we learn most deeply when we teach others and in order to teach others deeply we must be willing to be continually learning. As teachers, we are always learning new information and new ways to explain content to students.  My passion for teaching will be forever fueled by my lifelong passion for learning.  Forever a teacher, forever a learner!