More Than Just Grades- The Teachers Who Shaped My Education

From the very first day of my sophomore year, I could tell Mrs. Mayes was a different kind of teacher. I was in her class for Creative Writing 2- I had taken the first year online (yay COVID) and had a different teacher, so I had never met her before. But as I walked into her classroom, I knew she was going to be my favorite teacher. There were streamers across the ceiling, colorful posters littering the room, rugs on the thin, carpeted floor, and a colorful ‘Welcome, Writers!’ written on the white board.

The first year coming back after COVID was…challenging, to say the least. It’s like every student was suddenly being sent off to their first day of kindergarten again- none of us really remembered how to communicate with one another face-to-face. In most of my classes, the teachers just let us figure those issues out on our own, avoiding the first-day icebreakers and get-to-know-yous that usually litter the first day of school. Mrs. Mayes, however, bulldozed right through the awkward energy by excitedly yelling “I’M SO GLAD I CAN SEE MY STUDENTS IN REAL LIFE!!” The second the bell rang. She then went on a rant about how excited she was for the upcoming year for at least 15 minutes before giving us an icebreaker. I don’t even remember what the game was- all I remember was that I was finally excited to go to school again.

As our first big writing project, she introduced a dystopian short story, and encouraged all of us to consider unique apocalypses to make for our stories. Funnily enough, I ended up turning in the assignment late, as I wanted to make sure the story had a natural close. That was when I was introduced to what was possibly the most hilarious and engaging grading style I’ve ever seen.

In Google Documents, you can leave comments on certain words, lines, and paragraphs. Mrs. Mayes used that feature to its fullest capacity, leaving tips, comments, and more as she read. Other than pointing out my numerous spelling mistakes, she would also put comments on parts she liked. In that specific story, I had a section on the first page of the story where two characters were texting each other, which she highlighted and commented- “Such a creative way to show this kind of dialogue; I’m so excited to read more!” Then when the plot twist hit, a simple comment of, “GASP”. Her grading, unlike almost every other teacher I had, made me excited to fix the mistakes; I wanted to see how she would react to a more complex story!

By the end of the year, she was my absolute favorite teacher; I had even convinced some of my friends to sign up for her class the following year through my stories of her class alone. On the last day of class, she handed an envelope to each student, telling us to open them after class. So, I put it in my backpack and opened it in my next class. Inside was a personal letter to me, saying she loved the way I could bring characters to life, and she hoped I would keep writing. I totally ended up crying in Geometry that day.

So the next year, I took the final Creative Writing class. I was devastated I wouldn’t be able to take the class my senior year, but I loved every minute of my final class with her. Sometimes, she would even ask me and the other Creative Writing 3 students how she could make the class more interesting for the next year. One student recommended longer word counts, another extra credit projects, and I recommended she make them write a whole book and self-publish it through Amazon or something at the end of the year.

To my absolute astonishment, as I sat in on the Creative Writing 2-3 class during my free period as a senior, she followed my advice; the Creative Writing 3 students would write an entire book over the course of the year. I couldn’t decide if I was glad or disappointed I missed out on that particular project. Over the course of the three years I knew her, she went from only teaching one creative writing class to teaching exclusively creative writing. It was amazing to see she was finally getting the recognition she deserved. On the last day for seniors, (because we got to be done with our classes a couple weeks early), I gave her a hug, and an envelope of my own- almost 3 pages dedicated to thanking her for all she had done for me over the course of my high school career. At the end of the day, I got an E-mail back from her saying she cried, and asked me to send her an E-mail back to update her on my summer and college classes.

I thought that was the last I’d see of Mrs. Mayes, but I was proven wrong at graduation when suddenly, I looked at one of the many teachers holding mirrors as the students entered the massive auditorium and realized Mrs. Mayes was there, because of course she would be. I walked right up to her in my cap and gown and tried really, really hard not to ruin my makeup by bawling my eyes out right then and there.

This was a person who from day one, even when I didn’t believe in myself, believed in me. She encouraged me to write for the sake of writing, to have confidence in my skills, and to have confidence in myself. If not for her, you would not be reading these words in front of you. There, of course, have been so many others in my life who made me excited to learn, and I hope there will be even more amazing mentors in my life who teach me valuable lessons and help me along my journey.

There have already been so many in my life who have helped me- Mrs. Brisbos, who gave me a hug on the last day of third grade. Mrs. Fallquest, who made me realize that a big personality is an amazing thing. Mrs Vaughn, who told me that I was worthy of more. Mrs. Harrington, who helped me look at the stars in wonder again. Mr. Rice, who always made me laugh on tough days. Mr. Mouziveres, who helped get me through online learning. Mrs. Hoppock, who let me step outside and text my dad when he was going through his cancer treatments and would always give me a hug when I passed her in the hallways. Mr. Moore, who always greeted me with a smile and remembered exactly what I did over the weekend. And of course Mrs. Mayes, who held up a mirror at graduation for me so I could fix my hair and wipe the tears from my eyes.

Even in the smallest ways, there are so many people who shaped who I am today. And I know that every person had that one teacher- they can name them, too. Isn’t that amazing? That one person who someone only knew for maybe one or two years could have such an effect on a person’s life, even years later. Those teachers shaped my High School experience, and set me up not just for college or a career; they helped me become a better person, inspiring me to help others just like they helped me.

(Here's Mrs. Mayes! She's the cool teacher who had couches in her room.)