Education is My Future by Sydne

Education is My Future by Sydne - February 2024 Scholarship Essay

Sitting in my mom’s office at my elementary school, watching her intently working on her computer with stacks of forms on her desk, she tells me, as she has many times, “Sydne, don’t be a teacher. Do something else with your life.” As a young girl, I hadn’t put much thought yet into what I wanted to do after high school. I was more concerned with things like who was coming for a sleepover or how many more AR points I needed to qualify for the big AR Blast Party.

Over the next several years, my future plans included cosmetology school, nursing, and that changed to a business degree. During my senior year and the summer after graduation, I worked at a daycare in my hometown. Between this job and volunteering in my church, I knew in my heart that being a teacher is what I wanted to do. Once this decision was made, I was actually excited about my future and going to college.

I have had a front row seat to education my entire life. While my mom is not a teacher, she sees every side of education as a registrar. Because of her position, I have spent more time at the schools and built relationships with many educators that other students have not. I have seen teachers putting in many hours outside of the school day, administrators working with upset parents, and the general workload of being an educator.

I have also seen what it takes to instill a love of learning in students. Like some of my favorite teachers, I have a love for kids and doing what I can to help them be successful. I believe my future classroom will be a safe place where students will be eager to learn and be proud of the things they can accomplish. I also believe I can help students learn things they may have thought they couldn’t learn and I’m looking forward to seeing those “lightbulb moments” in them.