It All Started With Chemistry by Courteney

It All Started With Chemistry by Courteney - July 2014 Scholarship Essay

Her name is Elizabeth Baber, and from the first day of chemistry to the last class I will ever be required to sit through, She will always be the most important teacher I will have had. Mrs. Baber was not just a teacher to me, She was the most influential person of my high school career. She started out as my Chemistry teacher , and from an education standpoint she was an amazing teacher. Throughout the first couple of weeks of chemistry I realized that I wasn't particularly gifted in that area of science. Whenever I would need help all I had to do was go in after school or during study hall and ask for it. She would never turn away a student that needed her help.

Mrs. Baber’s was and still is a very straight forward and just person. She isn't the type of person to tell someone what they want to hear or baby them . I have always admired her for that. Some teachers in high school don’t treat you like you’re an adult, but she always treated you as an equal. Treating your students as an equal wasn't something any of us were accustomed to either. We had spent years with teachers treating us as just little kids whom need their hand held throughout the school year.

Throughout my two years as a student with Mrs. Baber I learned more life lessons then in my previous seventeen years as an individual. She taught me so much more than just Chemistry and Anatomy. Such as getting involved with the school really was important. I joined over 5 different clubs with her encouragement. She pushed me to apply my self, and because of her I got the best grades my Junior year than I had my entire Freshman a Sophomore year. I pushed myself because I looked up to her so much that I didn't want to disappoint her. I focused on school work more and studied more because I knew if I got a good grade, Mrs. Baber would be proud of me, and more importantly I would be proud of myself. She made learning fun for me, and it never had been fun before.

Along with educating me in the classroom, She also helped me through life. There were a couple rough patches with my family throughout Junior and Senior year, and whenever I need to talk or needed advice, she was always there. She told me the truth too; if I was out of line with my parents then she would tell me that I was wrong. If I was trying to figure out how to handle a situation with friends or family, she would help me figure out a way to fix the problem. The life advice that she gave me in short years couldn't be captured in 900 words if I tried. I asked her opinion on everything from my prom dress to what college to go to, Her opinion means more to me than I could ever express in an essay. Sometimes I wish instead of a teacher, she was a friend, because she is so much more than just a teacher to me.

She had the biggest positive impact on me not only as a student but also just being a better Individual. She taught me to be myself and that not everything you learn from teachers has to be about school such as how to count Sig Figs, or how use the empirical formula. She taught you about life and the reality of the world. She taught me how to be a better Individual and not care about what others thought, because it wouldn't make me happier about myself. I could never express how thankful I am for Mrs. Baber for what she has taught me. Although I currently have 4 years of college to undergo and countless professors I will have I am confident that not one of them will be even close to impacting me the way Elizabeth Baber did. They can try, but they have some extraordinary shoes to fill.