After graduating from Messiah, I was hired as a kindergarten teacher at the Kindergarten Academy in the Mechanicsburg Area School District. I had completed my junior field placement at Kindergarten Academy and volunteered in the school during my senior year. These experiences made me fall in love with MASD and I was thrilled to be offered a job here. My school is unique in that it houses all of the kindergarteners from our district, which means there is always something exciting going on. Another great aspect of my job is that one of my best friends from Messiah was hired in the same building and teaches right down the hall from me.
When I’m not teaching I love spending time with family and friends, hiking, reading a good book, and shopping!
It has been great to see how God has made my entire experience at Kindergarten Academy come full circle from junior field experience to a teacher with a classroom of my own. I know without a doubt that I wouldn’t be the teacher I am today if it wasn’t for my time at Messiah. The professors not only prepared me with the content I needed, but they showed me what it means to be an effective and influential teacher. If I hadn’t gone to Messiah I don’t think I would have been as prepared to be a Christian educator in a public school.
Every day I enter my classroom with the mindset to love first, teach second. My students are not perfect so there are days that this is harder than it seems, but I am reminded that God has specifically placed each of these children in my classroom. My goal isn’t just that my students leave with all the tools they need for first grade. My goal is to try to shine God’s light on them every day and help shape them for life beyond my classroom. I have found that while my job is to teach my students, more times than not it is my students who teach me. My kindergarteners have taught me to be confident in my own skin, start each day with a smile, and find joy even in the little things.
I’m forever thankful for my experiences at Messiah and the professors who walked with me along the way, from my first education class to having a classroom of my own. I would not be the teacher I am today if it hadn’t been for my time at Messiah.