Chasing Dreams

 

ACTs were fast approaching, and it was time to start applying for colleges. My sister was attending Illinois State University, and I’d always taken comfort in having her around to show me the ropes. After all, she did precisely that in high school, so why should college be any different? And I’d already visited her at ISU—she, the doll that she is, looked after me as I got absolutely inebriated from consuming exactly two and a half beers.

In my defense, I would have been lucky to weigh in at 120 lbs at 16.

Anyway, it was a no-brainer—I applied to ISU where I’d be accepted to study elementary education and later earn my Bachelor’s degree as a certified teacher for grades K-9.

My interest in working with kids began around the same time I discovered I was a lightweight (completely unrelated). One of my first jobs was in my hometown’s Bartlett Park District, and I was afforded the opportunity to work with children as young as four. Most notable was coaching the littles how to play soccer and basketball, a feat I was fairly successful at when the minions weren’t tackling me to the ground. But I definitely wouldn’t have gained their affinity if it weren’t for a coworker who showed me the ropes—basically, I learned that all you need to get their attention is a little (okay, a lot of) enthusiasm. So I capitalized on that, and despite my introverted tendencies, I became somewhat of a natural as an instructor.

I’d go on to work with kids in several different settings: summer camps, before/after-school programs, one-on-one tutoring, clinical classroom sessions, and eventually, student teaching (which, oddly enough, was in San Antonio—long story short, my university offered education majors some “alternative placements”, and there’s a certain allure to 70-degree weather in January when you’re a Chicago native).

Now, I’d seen my fair share of challenges over the years, but nothing really prepared me for student teaching. I remember begging my co-op teacher, Mrs. Padgett, to stay in the classroom as much as possible, but she was a great mentor and knew when to kick me out of the nest. Granted, I flailed on the way down, but eventually landed on two feet just in time to walk the stage for graduation.

To my surprise, that same school called me for an interview about six weeks into summer. I didn’t flinch—my mother and I packed up a U-Haul and scurried our way down to San Antonio. I was officially a 5^th grade teacher at Nichols Elementary School.

And I sucked at it.

My first performance review was terrible, and I was immediately placed on a TINA (Teacher in Need of Assistance) in order to strengthen my classroom management skills. Fortunately, my principal and colleagues were excellent advocates, and by the end of the year I was exceeding expectations across several domains in PDAS (Professional Development and Appraisal System). Yeah...it’s worth noting there are about a zillion acronyms in the field of education. You’ve been warned.

This became the norm—I spent several more years teaching 5^th grade, then 4^th, but something unprecedented happened after about six or seven years in. My heart wasn’t in it anymore; I wanted a new challenge, something that would help me grow as an educator and a person. So I took the ELAR certification exam in order to pursue my next professional endeavor.

It wasn’t easy; I was a primary school teacher trying to secure a position in high school, and for years I kept hitting brick walls. Even my administration at the time suggested I apply for positions in middle school to boost my chances of landing an interview, but something about that didn’t sit right. It was time to step up my game.

After making a few calls, I learned about a two-week English-Lit workshop offered in the summer. I signed up immediately.

So there I was with my Bachelor’s in Elementary Education sitting among refined secondary English teachers, many with Master’s and PhDs in Literature. But I was a natural fit, and the district leaders running the workshop helped me land a couple interviews.

The first one was a bit forced and awkward, but the second felt like providence; I sat down with the principal and academic dean for what seemed more like a casual meeting over coffee than an actual interview. At its conclusion, I knew that my years at Nichols had come to an end.

After just over a semester of teaching Pre-AP English I, I was promoted to level lead (our lead at the time was promoted to instructional coach at a separate campus). And after two years, my department leaders and administration saw fit to give me the privilege of teaching English OnRamps, a dual-enrollment college course on rhetoric.

Holy crap.

I’d gone from teaching fourth grade to teaching a college-level course in just two years.

As I reminisce, it almost doesn’t seem real. How did that 22-year-old kid who could barely manage a classroom end up teaching college rhetoric? Truth be told, I had a lot of help from friends, family, and colleagues, but more importantly, I had a belief in myself that never wavered.

It doesn’t matter if the odds are stacked up against you. Goals, no matter how audacious, are worth pursuing. Will you fail? Absolutely. But as Prince EA says, there’s no such thing as a smooth mountain. Trust the failure. Trust the doubt. And when you make it to the peak, you’ll realize you aren’t even close to finished—there’s a whole mountain range ahead.

So start climbing.

Photo Credit: @phibstuff (Instagram)