2. …because all I ever
wanted to be
was a
junior high
classroom
TEACHER.
3. I was seeking a Master of Arts degree…
but I got a lot more than just an education.
4. For the first time in my life…
“Discovering
who you are
is the only
JOB
you have…
and
GOD
will find a
way
to pay you
to be
YOURSELF.”
~Ray Rood
…someone asked me to envision my future.
5. I was asked to see my life…
1985 1995 2005 2015 2025 2035 2045
…one decade at a time.
6. What I saw clarified the course of my career…
…and changed my life.
7. This is what I saw…
A move back to Louisiana
A marriage to a tall man with light hair
2 children, a girl and a boy
A job teaching in higher education
A home in a suburban community
Opportunities to teach younger students
Teacher leadership positions
Participation in state level work
A published book
A doctorate
Participation in change on a national level
8. Did what I see that
day come true?
See for yourself…
9. I left California, in spite of 3 job offers there…
…and moved back to New Orleans, Louisiana.
11. Daughter Bethany is born Son Michael is born
12. I taught Developmental Reading and Writing
to provisional freshmen at the
University of New Orleans
for over 10 wonderful years
13. I moved out of the city and to a wooded
suburb 24 miles north of New Orleans.
14. I left Higher Ed and began teaching
High School Social Sciences
Freshman World Geography Senior Psychology
15. I took on campus leadership positions:
Social Studies Department Head
Curriculum Design Team Leader
Freshman Coordinator
New Teacher Mentor
Staff Development Program
Facilitator
Teacher In-Service Workshop
Facilitator
16. I was honored to be named the
“2009 Louisiana Teacher of the Year”
17. I completed my first book…a gift to my
fellow state teachers of the year.
18. I was honored alongside all of the state teachers
in the White House Rose Garden
by President Obama
19. I was chosen for
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s
“Stimulus Package Money for Education” Committee
20. I participated in meetings with Dr. Jill Biden about
National Standards and Standardized Testing.
Last year at this time, I was standing on this stage trying to figure out how I came to be in the company of such a stellar group of Louisiana educators, never mind being named Teacher of the Year. In spite of being so clueless, I took the title with a deep sense of responsibility. I did have the presence of mind to know one thing - that I wanted to represent well all of the remarkable teachers in my state, many who had a strong impact on my life and my teaching. I just never realized how the coming year would change my life forever.
I participated in many roundtable discussions with my colleagues and it was at one of these sessions where I was able to talk about just how progressive our state truly is. I was so proud to represent all of the dedicated, hardworking teachers of Louisiana at that conference.
My year started at my home school, where my colleagues and students made me feel so special. My students would arrive at my door and see all of the signs made for me and the congratulations just never seemed to end. But one event was profound. After the first two weeks of school had passed, one of my freshmen came up to me and said, “Mrs. Tonguis, you are the BEST teacher I’ve ever had.” Now I know I was certainly NOT the best teacher he had ever had. It was the title that made his expectations rise to the point of a self-fulfilled prophecy.