Jacqueline Jackson - Liberty Elementary School
Two influencing factors brought me to the teaching field. The first factor was my third grade teacher and the second was my talent to play sports. At a young age, I looked up to and admired my third grade teacher for the enthusiasm and dedication she showed when teaching. I will never forget the day she gave us a class assignment on what we wanted to be when we grew up. I remember not being able to wait to tell her that I wanted to be a lawyer, because as children we often have big dreams. I will never forget her response as her words have stuck with me for a lifetime. She said, “Are you sure you want to be a lawyer? Maybe you need to find something a little bit easier for you to do.” Those words stayed in my heart for a long time and at that point, I knew I wanted to make a difference because children should never have their dreams taken away from them by a teacher.
Growing up I had this love for playing basketball, volleyball, and softball. Sports were a place where I learned self-discipline. Children are eager and looking to learn new and exciting things and this drew me to teaching.