She can be found in the history hallway, she inputs her creativity into her lesson plans, and she loves playing on her Nintendo Switch!

What made you want to become a teacher?

It’s like cheesy and generic and like everyone else, but I was very much influenced by my high school teachers. I felt really connected to them and I felt like they taught me a lot about myself and who I was as a person that I didn’t know, prior to… I wanted to just kind of have that same influence on other kids too.

How long have you been a teacher?

This is my eighth year of teaching.

What is something people think they know about being a teacher that they don’t know?

I think people don’t realize how many jobs teachers have. You’re teaching another point, you’re helping a kid through a personal problem and… you’re kind of like a parent to the kid. There’s just so many roles that you have to be as a teacher and I don’t think people who are not in the teaching profession realize how many roles that teachers always have to take on.

What is the best excuse a student has ever given you?

Good question. My kids don’t have any good excuses. I wish it was something interesting and unique. I’d let it go then. That’s my answer, I’m waiting. I’m waiting for the best excuse. 

If you weren’t a teacher, what would you be?

If I wasn’t a teacher, I always wanted to be a counselor, not like a high school counselor, but like a culture and a community (counselor). That is what I always want to do. Otherwise, when I originally went to college, or before I went to college, what I really want to do was I actually wanted to get into acting because I used to do a lot of theater when I was in high school.

What’s your favorite thing about the job?

My favorite thing about my job is obviously my students. I love all my students. It’s easier coming into work every day if you have awesome students, which I do this year. And number two, actually… tied at number one, my coworkers. I wouldn’t be here without them. They make my job a better place. 

What are you going to do after retirement?

After retirement, I hope to travel. That’s definitely on my bucket list to be able to do that. Just go to places I’ve never been before. And honestly, I would like to move somewhere else…I want to be somewhere different. I think just somewhere warmer would be really nice…somewhere by water too. I want to live by water. 

What’s your favorite thing to do while teaching?

I really love and enjoy lesson planning. My favorite teaching thing to do is lesson planning. I enjoy it. It gives me a chance to be creative. 

What’s the craziest thing that’s happened to you while teaching?

Oh, yeah. So one time when I was teaching, there was a kid that had a bloody nose and just got blood all over the table. 

How has your teaching improved over the years?

I would say, overall, I know I’ve become a better teacher. I think when I was younger, I thought I knew it all, but now as I’ve gotten older I realized I have a lot to learn, and I want to continue to grow as a teacher. I think I’ve gotten better at putting together lessons…and I’ve gotten a lot better at my content knowledge and understanding. Just overall I feel like I’ve just really grown a lot as a teacher (and) I want to continue to grow.

What are some hobbies that you enjoy doing outside of work?

Outside of work, I really enjoy reading. That’s something I’ve gotten back into just last year, I started reading a lot more. Another thing that I really like to do is I like to Cricut so I have a Cricut machine at home. I make a ton of different vinyl for different artworks. And I love playing on my Nintendo Switch. I (also) like to play cribbage with my fiance. 

What’s your favorite book? 

Harry Potter. My favorite of all the Harry Potter books is book number seven

What’s your favorite genre of books?

Definitely fantasy.

Does being a minority teacher influence your teaching?

I definitely think it does. I’m not saying that other teachers aren’t empathetic, but I think I’ve been through what other minority students have gone through so I think I can understand their perspective. Especially being the advisor of ASU (Asian Student Union) and Black Summit, especially because I am of Asian descent, I definitely understand what a lot of these kids are going through when they’re in school. So being a woman first and then being Asian definitely impacts who you are as an individual. I understand what it means to have to work through and guide through the world being a person of color on top of being a woman. I do feel that it helps me connect with my students on a different level compared to maybe what other teachers could do.

What advice would you give students applying for colleges

When you apply to colleges, or when you’re thinking about colleges, (think about) who is going to give you the most money? That is the most important, especially if you want to go on to grad school. I think it’s really important to figure out where you will get the most money. So where’s college going to be cheapest? I think that’s to me, that’s most important. Unless your parents are paying for college, then that’s awesome. And number two, I think people forget to think about what colleges have to offer outside of academics. Are there things to actually do in the city or the town that I’m going to in my college? I think that’s really important. And that’s one thing I didn’t really think of when I was thinking about going

What other subject would you teach?

If I had to teach any other subject minus what I teach now I think I probably would have taught English. The one other is that I always wanted to teach computer science too. I feel like that class would have been fun, but I obviously need to learn a lot more, but something computer science related or like technology integration class, that’s what I would teach.

Have you ever been in another district besides Tosa?

I was a December graduate. So there’s no teaching jobs in December. So I was a long term sub in the Green Bay Public School district for one semester before I came to Tosa.