These Teachers Made Us Who We Are ❤️

The teacher that had the most impact on my life was my mom, Rebecca Strickland. My mother dedicated her life to teaching first grade and because of her, I became an educator. Her passion for teaching, dedication to her students, and how she fostered learning through experiences, helped me discover that educating others was my lifelong passion.

— Tiffany Kinney, State Program Manager

My kindergarten teacher – Mrs. Jordan – really set me on a good path to enjoy the rest of my education. She was kind and fun, and I remember her classroom was set up in such a way that we were very engaged in our own learning (the reading carpet, our cubbies, all the different “play space” areas for creativity, our small group tables).

— Jessica Hall, VP of Customer Success

I’ll always remember Mrs. Van, my eighth grade teacher, who instilled in me a love of words and grammar. She was witty, using words so eloquently and cleverly and I wanted to be just like that. I’m still working on it. 🙂

— Abby Daniels, Sr. Manager, Marketing

Science was always a challenging subject for me, but my sixth grade science teacher taught me how to enjoy learning things that were difficult. She taught our class that learning from mistakes could help boost your understanding and that has always stuck with me.

— Breanna Blanton, Associate Product Marketing Manager

My fifth grade teacher Mrs. Johnston. She would tell my class funny stories about her upbringing in Ipswich, Massachusetts. She was a great story teller. We hung on to every word she said. She was very inspiring and encouraging to each and everyone of us. She would always brush her teeth after lunch in the classroom. I think she would brush her teeth in front of us to show the importance of hygiene. I wrote to her when my family and I moved from Middleton, Massachusetts to Lynn, Massachusetts in January 1980. I was in the middle of my seventh grade year. I was nervous moving in the middle of the year to a city where I knew nobody. She responded to me with stories of Lynn, and made me feel less nervous. We continued to write to each other throughout the year. Every time she would write, she would enclose one dollar. She was the best teacher I ever had.

— Dennis Nye, Associate Customer Success Manager

My teacher that left an impact was my high school AP physics teacher, Mr. Ayers.  His approach to the class changed the way I looked at life.  He treated us as true adults because we elected to take the hardest class in high school.  He taught us that overachieving has its benefits and that we should always push ourselves to excel.

— Kevin Combs, State Program Manager

My first and second grade teacher, Mrs. Howell, continues to be one of the most inspiring, intelligent and kindest souls I have ever met. Her emphasis on being a good person and perpetually pursuing knowledge have shaped me into who I am today—I will always want to make her proud!

— Natasha Vartanian, Script Writer

My favorite teacher was Mr. Gary Russell who I had for every single math class in high school.

I was fortunate enough to run into him a few years back and introduce him to one of my children. I shared during that introduction that Mr. Russell never would give me an A (I was forever an 88 student!). Spoken like a true teacher, he replied, “You never earned the A!” Mr. Russell made me work hard to “earn” that A in his class… which I finally did my final semester of high school. Whew! It got to the point that when we took a test, I would be at his door when the next class ended… and he’d have my test graded and ready for me because he knew I’d be coming by!  I credit Mr. Russell for instilling in me diligence, determination and a somewhat competitive spirit when it came to academics… which paid off in college.

He was also always able to answer my “why” questions… “OK, but why is <insert postulate, theorem or formula> what you’re saying?”

I will be forever grateful for Mr. Russell.

— Shari Tomlinson, Customer Success Manager

Barbara Sullivan was my business education teacher at Memorial HS (Spring Branch ISD). From her kindness to her drive to help prepare her students for the real world, Mrs. Sullivan was an inspiration. She is the reason that I became a teacher.

— Kelli Erwin, Sr. Instructional Design Manager & Product Owner

My fifth grade teacher, Mr. Buie, was a rare teacher indeed. Not only was he the only male teacher on the elementary campus and older than most of the staff, but he was also in a wheelchair due to having polio. He was strict, but truly the kindest man, who made learning interesting through his perspective on all he had experienced.

— Karen Smith, Regional Partnership Manager

Further Reading