Monday, February 24, 2014

Forever an Educator By: LaKisha Merritt

The great philosopher Socrates once said, “Know Thyself.”  I believe that who I am is a collection of the many puzzle pieces that have been shaped by those that have had an effect on my life.  
As a child, my family instilled in me the value of an education.  Like many of the students that I serve, I too grew up in an impoverished community. Fortunately, the love and calculated direction of my family, I was taught that my environment would not define who I would become.  

At an early age, I knew my destiny was to become an educator.  When people ask me how long I have been teaching, my usual response is since I was eight years old.  I have been a teacher and served in other capacities in Dallas ISD.  
This journey has nurtured my learning, as well as, a time of preparation.  I say, preparation, because all that I am and all that I have become has prepared me for the responsibilities that I have today. 
As an Assistant Principal, I have the privilege of affecting the lives of students on a greater scale.  I have a greater view of the lives of the students’ world as it relates to the whole child.  With the view of all the complexities of the whole child made apparent, I can still utter the words, “I will accept nothing less than Excellence.”
I view my work as a calling for who can do such a work that requires hours beyond the normal 8 to 5.  You can’t put a time limit when it comes to affecting lives.  Whether it is during the school day, at lunch in the cafeteria, or an after-school event, the lives I am able to touch and be touched by is an addition to an unfinished puzzle. 
I think the greatest challenge of my life’s unfinished puzzle is ensuring that each piece added is a positive characteristic that I can share as I influence the lives of others.  I think serving as an educator is the most noblest of all career fields for who can fulfill their life’s destiny without the guidance of a teacher?

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