Military Resources
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Teach For America. All opinions are 100% mine.
I remember sitting in high school math wracking my brain over algebra. I struggled to figure out each painstaking problem. My brain could not make sense of the numbers. My heart thumped against my chest with each passing moment. My forehead wet from tiny beads of anxiousness seeping out of my body.
“Deep breath,” she said.
I looked up at my math teacher. Should could tell I was nervous. My leg jittered beneath the desk revealing my anxiousness to everyone around me.
“Deep breath,” she said again.
I inhaled as much air as I could into my lungs and then allowed it to passively whoosh out of me. Following her steady instruction, I did it again. And again.
In and out.
In and out.
Calm enough to think, the math problems became clearer and clearer.
Teaching is important.
Teach For America is recruiting military veterans and spouses to become teachers and put students on a new life trajectory.
Veterans and spouses now have the opportunity to join a community dedicated to their training, support and lifelong leadership development.
No matter where you are stationed, Teach For America finds, trains and places outstanding leaders as teachers in 52 regions around the USA. The organization welcomes recruits from all career backgrounds and majors, which is such an important factor for military spouses!
Teach For America has an outstanding service legacy with a bright future for alumni: Over 25 years, Teach For America alumni have led more than 1,000 schools and school systems. Together they have reached more than 5 million children. That’s an amazing number!
Veteran and military spouse jobs.
It’s no secret around here that military spouse jobs are difficult to find. The majority of spouses want to work, but frequently find companies turning a cold shoulder during the hiring process.
Teach For America is opening the door to military veterans and their spouses via the Military Veterans Initiative. They are offering an opportunity for you to make an impact. With Teach for America, you receive extensive training and ongoing coaching and development in the classroom.
My math teacher made all the difference.
Two days later, my teacher revealed that I passed the test.
Without the help of my high school math teacher guiding me through each challenging math concept, I would’ve never made it through.
She took the time to help me after school, when all the other students went home.
She took the time during class to answer question after question, never once acting annoyed or making me feel dumb for asking.
She took the time to remind me to breathe during each math test, instead of looking the other way.
She never left me hanging, and I’ll never forget her. That’s the thing about teachers: they have the ability to make an impact on a student’s heart and mind. An impact that students carry with them forever.
It’s been nearly 15 years since I last saw my math teacher. I still hear her calm and steady voice whisper “Deep breath” when my heart starts thumping against my chest.
She probably has no idea the impact she had on my life.
But I do.
Interested in Teach For America? You can learn more about teaching here.
There are many TFAs (as we call them) here in South Dakota. It’s a GREAT program, and I”m proud to have gotten to know a few different people. You can really impact kids in so many ways by becoming a teacher. Thank you for this post (sponsored or not)! Teachers do make a difference, and it’s great that TFA is now working with military spouses so well.
I’m really glad to hear you enjoy a positive experience. That’s awesome!
My Daughter-in-law is a Military Veteran and Spouse and is in process of moving to Iowa. A current teacher in Honolulu she does not qualify for the Iowa Licensure. She has a Masters degree in Educational Psychology and has been teaching at the grade school level for the past 4 years. She has passed every exam and assessment with flying colors. Why is it one state feels like their children are different than those in any other State. I can’t imagine how upsetting it is to think she will have to stop her pursuit of her Doctorates to reroute to an Iowa teaching degree and on top of that student teach once again in order to obtain an Iowa Teaching license. I am a veteran and an Iowa native and something has to be done to even the employment field across our United States. A great teacher is a great teacher wherever they teach and we should be encouraging teachers not discouraging from continuing on their path to educating others.