A Child's First Teacher by Katelyn

A Child's First Teacher by Katelyn - March 2021 Scholarship Essay

Katelyn Rowan
Varsity Tutors Essay
March 7, 2021
A Child’s First Teacher
To me, an academic role model is someone that pushes you, someone that sticks by your side even when you fail, someone that will never tell you your dreams are too big.. When I take a look at my academic journey as a student, there isn’t one specific teacher that stands out to me that I would call my ‘academic role model’ but there is one person in particular that I feel fits the part perfectly.
Desteny Rowan. Desteny is a woman who constantly pushes herself as an individual, always putting others before herself, but not recently. Recently, my mom has gone through some financial hardships due to COVID, and has decided that she’s going to put herself out there and go back to school for HVAC. My mom previously worked at Berquist in Bigfork, Minnesota for over twenty years, and I know that going back to school is not going to be easy by any means, and I find her a stronger person each and every day for working towards a better future.
The reason my mom is my academic role model despite not having any academic background or teaching experience, is simply because she has neither of those. My mom was never taught about the opportunities of college or a higher education, which is why she has always pushed me to work hard, study hard, and be successful in my academic career and life overall. My mom going back to school strengthens my case even so, because I know that even though she’s scared and anxious for this new start, she’s going to push herself to finally be successful, happy, and educated in something that I know she feels will give her a sense of purpose and accomplishment. Desteny Rowan, my mom, is the biggest academic role model I could ever have because she will always encourage me to learn more, be successful, and to never give up on those big, achievable dreams, because that’s what a good academic role model does. Desteny Rowan doesn’t give up or stop chasing those big dreams, and neither will I.