Single mothers share a common goal: to make the world a better place for our children. In my experience, we often work to achieve this goal by combining our love of motherhood and our chosen careers. That has certainly been the case for me. I chose to become a teacher because I believe that every future generation is capable of making the world a better and more inclusive place. I want to personally invest in future generations for both my children and my students. I spent five years teaching in a general education ELA setting before transitioning into special education - a transition inspired by my own two children - and I realized that to meet my students' individual needs, I would need to seek out more information, resources, and specialized training. That is why I am pursuing my master's degree - to "level up" for both my students (as they might say). I believe that my determination to continue learning, growing, and seeking out more information to benefit future generations is what makes me uniquely deserving of this award. I'm thrilled to share that my education is already having a direct and meaningful impact. My coursework and professors are providing me with new tools, resources, knowledge, practices, and perspectives that benefit my students individually, my class as a whole, and even me as a mother to my children, and I sincerely look forward to all that I have to learn.

I am currently a teacher pursuing a Master of Arts in teaching. While teaching was a career path that I had always dreamed of pursuing, becoming a teacher wasn't possible until I turned 30 due to the many twists and turns that life often takes. There wasn't one individual person or any one specific moment in time that inspired me to become an English Language Arts teacher. When becoming a teacher became a real possibility, I simply followed my heart. However, there were recurring moments that led to the realization that I wanted to transition from the general education classroom to the special education classroom, which I did last year. The recurring moments that I'm speaking of became more frequent with time. Every year that I spent teaching the general education classroom, I found myself wanting to spend more and more time working with my students who were also part of our special education program. It became increasingly difficult to send our shared students to the resource room for additional support because I realized that I wanted to be the one providing that additional support. In hindsight, much of my desire to make the change from general education to special education was the result of my experiences as a mother. Both of my children have autism, and working with students who share so much in common with my own children just feels right. It makes me so happy knowing that I'm pouring back into the beautiful community that my two wonderful children are a part of, and being in my classroom now feels like a beautiful extension of home. This first year working in special education has been unbelievably rewarding. While I work hard to teach, inspire, and encourage my students every day, I know that there is much more that I can learn, which is why I am pursuing my master's degree. Through my career and educational choices, I hope to inspire both my children and my students to pursue their dreams, no matter what age they are or stage of life they are in. My students know that I am pursuing my master's degree, and sharing that has created a wonderful opportunity to have meaningful conversations about our futures, life choices, and dreams. It's important to me to share with them that my life has had ups and downs and that their lives will too, but dealing with challenges, change, and delays is part of life and most certainly keeps it interesting! I also hope to inspire other teachers who feel the call to transition into special education. Having been in both worlds has given me a unique perspective, and I think that we as teachers have a wonderful opportunity to help bridge gaps, both real and perceived, in the relationships between general education and special education departments. I want to inspire others to address some common misconceptions about special education so we can all work together to provide for our students of all abilities. We may be working in different departments, but we share students and goals and are ultimately part of one big, beautiful team - our school!

My children were the ones who opened my eyes to the world of special education. They showed me how beautiful the special needs community is, as well as all of the struggles that those who are a part of the community face each day. After five years teaching in the general education setting, I altered course to become a special education teacher. I wanted to share in the joys of educating members of the special needs community while also helping to alleviate some of their challenges. Now that I'm a special education teacher, I plan to make a positive social impact in my career by empowering and serving both my students with special needs and their families through compassion while continually learning how I can better support their needs. I learned from my time in the general education classroom that students often become self-conscious about utilizing special education services around sixth grade. They often start to feel singled out/different when they leave their general education classroom to come to me for extra support in the resource room. For that reason, I've prioritized making my room feel like a natural, sensory-friendly extension of their day and an inviting space that they look forward to visiting. When my students tell me that they don't want to come to my room for support because it makes them feel too different, I talk openly with them about their concerns. I explain that everyone needs different tools in life to succeed, and that my classroom is one of their tools. I also spend time reinforcing the idea that we can do difficult tasks that seem overwhelming by taking things one step at a time. Sometimes, something as simple as taking a worksheet and cutting the problems into strips so students can hold just one problem at a time is a simple and effective way to inspire confidence and make progress. However, that's a small adjustment, and solving problems certainly isn't always that simple. My graduate courses on behavior and trauma will help me become a better-informed educator who is prepared with the latest information regarding teaching students who experience more significant challenges. As for my students' families, I know what it feels like to be a mom on the other side of the table during an IEP meeting, unsure about what the scores on paper mean and afraid of failing to ask the right questions. That's why I will continue to work to provide my students' families with the tools they need to help their children. I want them to feel at ease while discussing their child's success and future and to know that I truly am there to help educate and support their child to the very best of my ability. My students and their families are a unit, and both require support. Through my work as a special education teacher, I hope to continue making a difference by empowering and supporting my students and their families.

There wasn't one moment in particular that gave me the courage to go back to school. Instead, it was a group of people who gave me the courage to go back to school, and that group is made up of my school's special education department and my children. I started my career in education as a general education teacher. However, with every year that I taught in the general education setting, I realized more and more that what I really wanted was to spend my time working with our special education students. I had watched my own children and the difference their special education teachers were making in their lives for years, and I wanted to join the special education team to be there for my students the way my children's teachers had been there for them. Instead of sending my students to the resource room teacher, I wanted to be the resource room teacher. So, I made the change this year, and I'm now part of the special education team and pursuing a Master of Arts in Teaching, because I know there is always so much more to learn, especially when we shift into new roles. It has been quite easy, to be honest, to find a great deal of courage to go back to school within our special education department because all of the teachers on our team display courage on a daily basis. Watching the teachers within our special education department teach their hearts out, find solutions to daily challenges, stay calm and patient in difficult situations, and put into practice all they have learned over the years is inspirational! Everyone within the department is so dedicated, knowledgeable, and supportive of one another that it's easy to draw courage and inspiration from them both individually and as a team. However, I must admit that the courage to go back to school has mostly come from my own children. They have autism and show courage every day by navigating a world that isn't necessarily designed with their needs in mind. They keep going when things get tough. They learn how to regroup and adapt and are incredibly resilient overall (and my youngest even manages to do this without being able to speak yet due to a speech delay). For these reasons, and many more that I couldn't possibly list, my children are my biggest source of courage. If my children can do everything they do, then I can certainly go back to school and learn absolutely everything I can learn to be a better mother to them and a better teacher for my students. Without even realizing it, my children constantly remind me that anything is possible, and they motivate me to do everything I can to make the world a more inclusive place. The best part is that I know my source of courage isn't limited to the time I am in school. I will continue to find courage and inspiration in my team and children as I attend school for my master's degree, and for many, many years to come, both in my personal and professional life.

I want to continue to build a classroom environment for my special education students that will positively impact their confidence and self-esteem. Building my dream classroom environment has already begun. However, it will always require growth and change. Right now, part of that growth and change includes furthering my own education. After five years of teaching in the general education classroom, I decided to make the switch to teaching special education. I wanted to have a positive impact on my school and the students I work with, and I'm happy to say that the classroom of my dreams is off to an amazing start. I've recently been accepted to a master's program. My Master of Arts in Teaching program includes two certificate options - reading specialist and behavior and trauma, both of which will be incredibly beneficial. Many special education students have print disabilities, and I want to have every possible resource I can to help increase each of my students' literacy skills. Additionally, some of my students, unfortunately, struggle with behavior issues (that are sometimes linked to childhood trauma), and I want to know how to handle these delicate emotional situations as they come up. The knowledge I will acquire through my master's program will help me teach my struggling readers the skills they need to advance in their reading. The program will also help me learn how to de-escalate and support my students during times of emotional struggle. Both of these will translate to increased confidence and self-esteem for my students. This is because all subjects require reading, and the better my students can read, the better equipped they will be to learn in all subject areas. Furthermore, the more coping skills I teach my students, the easier navigating emotional struggles will become for them, which will result in increased self-esteem. When students know they can cope with the struggles that come their way, their self-esteem naturally increases. All students need strong reading schedules and to be able to emotionally regulate, but they have to be taught these skills. All students also need to build self-esteem and confidence, which comes with learning these skills. I'm proud to be building a classroom environment for my students that will have a postive impact on them in these areas of their lives!

I’m passionate about special education because my two sons have autism, and I want to be there for my students the way my sons’ teachers have been there for them. After five years teaching in the general education setting and watching my sons thrive in the amazing special education program at our school, I couldn’t stay away any longer. I had to become a part of the program so I could bring the experience my sons were having in the elementary school to the middle schoolers I already knew and loved. I made the switch to teaching special education in August, but I know there is always more to learn, which is why I’ve started working toward my master’s degree. For five years, I watched my middle school students reluctantly leave my general education classroom for additional assistance in the resource room. Middle school is a tricky age, and it’s even more difficult to navigate when you have a learning disability. Standing out in any way is hard, and leaving class every day for extra help definitely makes you stand out, something middle school students rarely want to do. When I became a special education teacher, I was determined to take some of the fear and uncertainty out of having an IEP for my students and help build their confidence, and I’m happy to say that it’s slowly but surely working. Put simply, they can’t make progress academically if they don’t feel confident in their abilities and at peace with the idea of having a learning disability in general. So, my mission is an ongoing two-part mission. The first part involves praise. I celebrate every win. “Great! That’s right!. Nice, you’ve got it now!” - all of these phrases go a long way and help build my students’ confidence. And when struggles persist, I explain that struggling is okay. There are ups and downs, and it’s all part of learning. I’m honest and explain that everyone has subjects they are more interested in than others, and strengths vary from person to person. What’s important is to stay positive and continue to try new things until we figure out what works for them together. The second part of the two-part mission involves taking the mystery and fear out of having an IEP. I’ve quickly learned that most special education students know that they have an IEP, but they’ve never actually seen it. They don’t know what it means to have an IEP other than that it means they go to a resource room for extra help and are different from most of their peers as a result. When students feel like IEPs are scary or bad, I get out their file and show them the outside of the folder. I say, “Everyone has a folder here at school, but you have two. That’s because one has all of your IEP information inside of it. An IEP isn’t scary or bad. It’s information for you, your parents, and your teachers about which tools you need to succeed. Everyone needs a unique set of tools to learn. We just go into more detail for some students because their set of tools is often more unique than others.” I then take out the page that has their accommodations on it and show them their accommodations. Spreading encouragement and being honest and open with my students in these ways has done wonders for their confidence, helped normalize having an IEP, and put their minds at ease. I look forward to being able to bring more to the table for my students in the future and find new ways to help them embrace everything that makes them the wonderful individuals they are and move toward adulthood and independent living with confidence!

The first time I heard Taylor Swift's "Marjorie" was while watching The Eras Tour from home. I feel like I should say that I've been a longtime fan of Taylor's for years. However, I didn't really tune in to her music until she released her Midnights album, which is why I heard "Marjorie" for the first time last year. When I watched Taylor performing, I was genuinely moved. The song resonated with me in a way that few songs do for several reasons. The first was because it is such a beautiful tribute to whom I suspected, and later confirmed, was Taylor's grandmother. With "Marjorie", Taylor paints a picture of a woman who was simultaneously ordinary and extraordinary in a world where we often think you can only be one or the other. The second reason was, when we remember someone who has passed away, it's often the highlights, the biggest moments, that come to mind first - birthdays and holidays, etc. However, in her song, Taylor gives equal weight to both the big pieces of advice her grandmother gave her and the small, intimate, everyday moments they shared. Her song is a reminder that love is also found in the quiet, ordinary, and often imperfect moments, and that's something that I find quite moving. The third reason that I was so moved by Taylor's song is that I'm very fortunate to still have my grandmother, who is 87 (soon to be 88) years young, and when I hear Taylor sing "Marjorie", I think of my own grandmother, Carole. I reflect on the big and small moments that we've been so fortunate to be able to share over the years, and I remind myself that I should cherish both big and small moments equally. Because of Taylor's song, I tuck away each piece of advice and seemingly ordinary moment in my memory with extra care. Finally, life is bittersweet because it is beautiful while we have it, but it eventually comes to an end for us all. Taylor's song reminds me that our loved ones are never truly gone because their memory lives on with their loved ones.

I'm currently in my sixth year of teaching, and in my time as a teacher, I've worked with secondary students who would benefit from participating in life skills courses. For this reason, if I could create a class that all K-12 students were required to take, it would be a life skills class. There are so many life skills that could be addressed throughout a child's school career. However, I'm a middle school teacher, and the areas of greatest need that I see for middle school students are: organization, prioritizing, following step-by-step instructions, and time management. Middle school students are used to receiving instant results from phones and computers when they have questions. As a result, explicitly teaching time management, organization, prioritizing, following step-by-step instructions, and even helping students practice patience while working through problems is incredibly important. I often find myself explaining to students that the reason they are feeling frantic when they come to me is that their papers are falling out of their binders. I then shift the focus from the assignment to helping them get organized. I explain that it's easier to see the big picture when we're organized and everything seems much more manageable. Once we're organized, we talk about which assignments take priority and need ot completed first. Then, we work together. Helping students with prioritization and organizing sounds incredibly basic, but students are often rushed from one class to the next and haven't truly been taught how to organize and prioritize. Following step-by-step instructions is also very needed, and it's something that can be taught at every age level and in very fun ways! For example, following step-by-step instructions is essential when cooking or baking, and that's a wonderful, hands-on activity that all students enjoy. Students who are sixteen and older need to know about basic car maintenance, and teaching them the step-by-step process needed to check oil levels is also a fun way to teach students to follow step-by-step instructions. Writing checks and making deposits are life skills that everyone must develop, and they also require students to learn to follow step-by-step instructions. Time management is crucial and a skill that takes many years for students to master. Learning to use a calendar and to-do lists doesn't come naturally. Both require explicit instruction and patience. Simple games that are timed can help students realize just how short a five-minute passing period is and how to maximize their break times. We often assume that students are learning these skills at home from their parents and should already have mastered them by the time they reach certain grade levels in school. However, that's simply not the case. Students need help in these areas for many reasons, and a life skills class required for all students that addresses needs at all ages and stages would be incredibly beneficial for all!