Q : Explain your teaching journey . Vantashan : “ I decided to go back and finish my bachelors in July 2021 in elementary education , but I had previous experience in middle school as a paraprofessional at Lowndes Middle School .”
Q : What did you do to prepare your classroom for the first day of school ? Vantashan : “ I am a decorator , so I was super excited to decorate my classroom . Many of my clients from my business supported me by purchasing all of the items on my wishlist . Since I teach life science , my theme was plants with many positive and motivational quotes .
Q : How do you communicate and build relationships with students and parents ? Vantashan : “ I build relationships by being myself . My students respect me because I am always myself — they know I love to laugh . This year I had a grandmother share with me that her daughter ( mother of a student ) was appreciative of how responsive I was to her child ’ s needs in my classroom . I felt it was normal because that is what I would want from my children ’ s teacher . Being myself has allowed me to build trust with my students and their parents .”
Q : What do you consider the most challenging aspect of being a teacher ? Vantashan : “ The most challenging has been being unable to reach every child . It may come later on but this year I have been beating myself up about not being able to connect with every student .”
Q : What are your hobbies ? Vantashan : “ My hobbies are shopping , especially at Hobby Lobby . I still enjoy doing hair and look forward to seeing my clients when I am available . I enjoy movie nights with my husband and children and reading a good book .”
Q : What is the best advice you received ? Vantashan : “ I received great advice from my mentor teacher during my time at Lowndes Middle . What stuck with me is ‘ remember to be intentional with all students and give all of you .’ and ‘ let yesterday be yesterday .’”
Sindy Augustin is a nontraditional , first-year teacher at SL Mason .
Q : Why did you become a teacher ? Sindy : “ I have come from the Higher Education arena as an educator and leader for over 15 years . Last year , moving to Valdosta , GA , had me readjust my focus to secondary education . Passion , purpose , and love are still the same , but the population has changed . I became a teacher because of my desire to positively impact , empower , and ignite the voice and mind of the next generation of leaders .”
Q : Did you always want to be a teacher ? Sindy : “ To be honest , no . I never envisioned myself as a teacher because of my internal insecurities . However , over time , I realized that I hate confusion and people who hoard information from others . As a result , students suffer , stagnate , or dislike the learning process . So I trained myself through my relationship with Christ to evolve and soar in the arena of speaking .”
Q : Explain your teaching journey . Sindy : “ My first professional role as a teacher was at Miami Dade College in the Sunny South Florida Region . Before this , I was always the one people came to for help understanding complex ideas when I was younger . As an adult , I enrolled in professional development courses to help me strengthen this gift of helping others . I believe leaders should not only lead by what they say , but they should lead by example . I continued to posture myself as a student first so that I could teach their minds while motivating their hearts . Fast forward today , here in Valdosta , as a nontraditional self-contained 5thgrade teacher , my focus is still the same . Focus on the assignment despite what it looks like on the outside . Why ? Because I am the sent one who was chosen to ignite the voice of children to know that their voices and thoughts matter within the educational system .”
Q : What did you do to prepare your classroom for the first day of school ? Sindy : “ To prepare for the first day of school , I thought about what I wanted the students I was assigned to experience daily . I thought about the
August 2022 | Valdosta Scene 25