1. What made you want to join the Mississippi Teacher Corps?
Growing up, I had some amazing teachers who went above and beyond and made such a huge impact on me. I have always loved to go to school and to learn and teaching has always been on my mind. When I graduated college with a degree in English, I will admit that I was still very unsure of what I wanted to do with my degree. MTC was brought to my attention at the perfect time in my life and I still had this nagging feeling that teaching might be what I wanted to do, so I made a leap of faith and joined as soon as I found out about it.
2. You're originally from Biloxi, you attended college in Oxford, and now you teach in Sardis. In your opinion, what makes Mississippi so unique?
I think that what makes Mississippi so unique is the history that is palpable throughout the state. You can see and feel it in cities like Biloxi and Oxford, but also in the more rural towns like Sardis. Something else that I think is very unique about Mississippi is how individually different parts of the state are from each other. For instance, growing up in Biloxi I experienced the beach and the ocean, casinos, tourism, and great seafood. When I moved to Oxford, I experienced this wealth of culture and small-town charm that I didn’t get in Biloxi; and when I started teaching in Sardis, I experienced this very rural way of life that I had never known before. Mississippi has made such a huge impression on me and joining MTC has given me the chance to make my own impression on it.
3. How have you changed since being in MTC?
I think what has changed most about me since joining MTC is the perception I have of myself. I have become so confident in my abilities to lead, and I have learned so much about how strong and capable I am. This experience has brought so many great traits out of me that I didn’t know I had. I really feel like after I finish this program I will be able to accomplish anything.
4. Any goals for yourself and/or your students this semester?
My goal for myself this semester is to raise the money to buy 25 copies of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. My students are starving for this book and that is a huge deal considering most of them don’t normally like to read. This book is so relevant and I would love to teach this novel to my students. If I can accomplish my goal, then my goal for my students will be to finish the novel. I am hopeful that this will lead them to reading other great works of literature in the future.
