152/180 Teacher Appreciation Week_1: Journey to LAUSD...

Apparently my school is celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week this week.
I thought it was next week.
So my boys' teachers will be appreciated next week instead!
#Notready #wrongdateonLAUSDsite #whathappenedtoMay9th

Since it is Teacher Appreciation Week, I would like to appreciate some teachers.
Since this is my 30th year of being a teacher,
I'm going to give shout outs to the teachers
that taught me to be a teacher.

I had originally wanted to go straight into graduate school after my bachelors.
Not in education,
Social Work.
Yup.
Crazy huh?
Well as fate had it, I wasn't accepted into UCLA.
My ego was a bit bruised.
So I did what every young, 23 year old, new college graduate, who didn't get accepted into the graduate program she thought she should have, did...
I went to UCLA's School of Social Work and asked why.
(Believe me, I can't believe I did that either. I mean I was a bitterly shy person by nature, but I did it).
I found the dean/professor of the program and straight up asked him what I did wrong or could have done better.

His response was something about maturity, lack of life experiences, yada yada yada...
When I shared that I had accepted a teaching job in LAUSD
(they were hiring emergency credentialed teachers at the time)
He told me that I would more directly impact families and children as a teacher,
than I would ever had if I were a social worker.
I didn't understand what he meant.
He also told me to reapply in a few years.
I never did.
And he was right.

Fast forward to 1985.
After being displaced from my first teaching job assignment in 1st grade at one school,
I ended up accepting a job 6 weeks into the school year at another school nearby.
Pacoima, 3rd grade, bilingual class, original teacher quit after 3 weeks, subs walked out,
and there I was.
I had one day with the mentor teacher.
She gave me a stack of teachers' guides and the keys.

It was a tough year but I somehow made it.
I had challenging students.
I had amazing students.

What saved me that first year were two teachers.
Evelyn Perez and Sandra Lutzker.
Grade level colleagues.
Shoulders to cry on.
Confidants.
Cheerleaders.
Mentors.
Friends.
My teachers.
Because of them, I became a second year teacher.