Professors Teach More than Academics by Caitlin

Professors Teach More than Academics by Caitlin - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

Teachers have the ability to influence their students each and every day. And yet, it was not until the past few years that I’ve recognized how my professors have impacted my own life.
High school is an interesting time in a person’s life. Some people love it and others hate it. I grew to love my high school experience, but it sure did not start off that way. I went into freshman year as my normal outgoing self, excited to see what was ahead of me. However, the months went on and my attitude started to change when I still didn’t have a close friend group.
I started smiling less, not attending the co-curricular activities I was once so eager to join, and participating less in class. My 9th grade Spanish teacher noticed the change in my attitude and did something about it – she reached out to me. Simple gestures like making an effort to say “Bye Caitlin” when I left the class gave me a feeling of recognition. And for anyone who experienced depression will understand, sometimes you just need that “goodbye” or act of acknowledgement to keep you going, to feel of worth. Our friendship started growing, as I began reciprocating the effort, asking her about little things from our mutual love of dogs to the next homework assignment.
I grew comfortable to once again participate in her Spanish class. This slowly evolved into contributing in all my classes, my grades increasing, and attending the club meetings I missed out on for most of freshman year. My Spanish professor grew into a friend, one who I did not have to force a smile when conversing with but the smile came naturally. My depression came to an end that summer and truthfully I give most of the credit to her. She believed in me and helped me once again believe in myself.
Yes, learning how to conjugate Spanish verbs and the vocabulary for every kitchen item proved successful in my studies but Señora Winus taught me something much more. She taught one of the most important life lessons I've learned to date – to reach out to everyone because a simple act of kindness can mean, and change, the world for someone.