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About Neville Adams

Teaching is not just a passion for Neville Adams it is, he believes, his destiny. This 14-year classroom veteran teaches English at Parkdale High School in Prince Georges County. His advice for those thinking of becoming an educator: “Be firm, be yourself, and always love them…for they will love you,” he says.

His most cherished classroom memory came when “students were so enthralled with a poetry assignment that they asked me to help them start a group – Lyrikal Storm – that eventually became the most prolific teen spoken word groups in the DMV and is now a subgroup of the Phoenix Medina Writer's Project, a nonprofit organization,” he says.

Adams received an A.A. and a B.A. from the University of the District of Columbia. His mother Sarah, also a teacher, has influenced him greatly. He appreciates her “passion, tenacity, and undying love of all her students,” he says. He admires his father Carl for “leading a large family in an urban setting and teaching everyone the value of education, work ethics, and the power of patience.”

At the top of Adams’ read-and-recommended list is Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Adams appreciates the way it “delves so deeply into the human condition and the systemic problems created by the orchestrated dismantling of the identity of oppressed people.” Had he not been a teacher, Adams would probably have become a lawyer. “I believe in justice and quality,” he says.

About Angelina Diehlman

“I believe that teaching is my vocation,” says Angelina Diehlman, a math teacher at Bishop McNamara High School in Prince George’s County. “I have never thought of teaching as a job but as a calling. I love math and have always been able to explain mathematical concepts to others. I continue to teach because I feel as though I make a difference.”

Diehlman, who has taught for 21 years, received her B.S. in Mathematics from Salisbury State University and has earned 30 graduate credits in Mathematics Education and Statistics from the University of Maryland.

The best piece of advice Diehlman has received as a teacher is that students want to learn. I will never forget that bit of advice,” she says. Often times when students seem disinterested or act out, it could very well be that they don’t understand the concept and either they are too embarrassed to ask a question or don’t even know what question to ask. In cases like that, I feel as though I need to reach deeper in my explanation and try to relate the concept to them in a way that they will understand.”

Her advice to those new to the profession: “No matter how many times you teach a topic year in and year out, remember that it is new to the students in front of you. Try to bring that enthusiasm that you have for your subject to your classroom. If a student knows that you love what you do, they begin to share in that enthusiasm and it truly is contagious.”

While Diehlman admires many, Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II are at the top of her list. “They reached out continuously to anyone in need no matter who they were or where they were from,” she says.

About Ehren S.B. Fairfield

His experiences – positive and negative – with languages during high school led Ehren S.B. Fairfield to become a teacher of Mandarin Chinese. Having taken two years of German in high school – the program was cancelled in its third year – Fairfield was unaware that some colleges require three years of foreign language studies for admittance.

“This lack of a language eventually attracted me to Dickinson College, where you can study almost any language and most offer a collaborating abroad program. I decided to try my hand at Mandarin Chinese and was fascinated by the culture and language. My year abroad in Beijing only solidified this passion,” says Fairfield. “After graduating, these two experiences led me to want to teach Mandarin at the high school level in order to offer a variety of language, something which I feel is lacking in our schools.”

Fairfield, a fourth-year teacher of Chinese at Charles Herbert Flowers High School in Prince George’s County, holds an undergraduate degree in East Asian Studies from Dickinson College.

His favorite moment as a teacher comes “whenever a student comes back to me and says they are using what they learned outside of school - eating at a Chinese restaurant, visiting Chinatown or even majoring in Chinese in college,” he says.

It was Mr. Bishop, Fairfield’s high school German and Honors English teacher, who most influenced Fairfield. “He had so much energy and had really interesting lessons. Anyone could tell he was passionate about his job,” he says.

The person Fairfield most admires is his wife “because because I am pretty sure she is a super-hero,” he says. “She is my best friend and I am most fortunate to get to spend our lives together. She has helped me become the person I am today.”

About LaSandra Muldrow Hayes

“I believe at any time the person who will discover the cure for cancer and other diseases, the next Five Star General, the next President of the United States, the first person to walk on Mars, the next Mother of the Year, Father of the Year or Teacher of the Year may be seated in my classroom,” says LaSandra Muldrow Hayes. “What a wonderful, humbling and enriching experience to realize as a teacher I can have an impact and make a contribution to the life of a young person.”

Hayes, who has taught for five years, received her B.A. in Music Education from Bennett College. At Bishop McNamara High School, she teaches freshman seminar, a required course that focuses on the skills necessary to succeed in the rigors of a college preparatory high school.

If she weren’t an educator, Hayes would be an international motivational speaking. “Inspiring others to be and do their best is something I enjoy doing and do very well,” she says. The person who has most influenced her is her mother, Amelia L. Muldrow, a former administrator and educator. “She taught each of her children to take whatever job you have and turn it into a million dollar experience. My mother instilled in us to always leave a job, place or situation better than you found it,” she says.

The best advice Hayes as received as a teacher is to follow the words of Mother Teresa, who said: “Let no one ever come to you without leaving better or happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, and kindness in your smile.”

About Jenny Klimczak

“Teaching at a school where I was once a student is fun and challenging,” says Jenny Klimczak. “My former teachers are now my colleagues and my students now sit where I once did. It helps me to see and appreciate all of the qualities that I enjoyed about my high school teachers, and attempt to emulate them through my role as an educator.”

Klimczak teaches conceptual physics at Bishop McNamara High School in Prince George’s County. She holds an undergraduate degree in Engineering Science and Mechanics from Virginia Tech.

In addition to teaching, Klimczak is a coach at the school. “[It] helps me to remember that my role as an educator is neither limited to the classroom nor to my subject. My students realize that things like manners and respect don't end when they leave my classroom. I want them to behave and be open to learning in every environment they encounter.”

The best advice Klimczak has received in her three years as an educator is: “Remember you are not only educating the mind, but also the heart,” she says. To prospective teachers she offers this advice: “Teaching can be very rewarding, but there is almost no other profession where you are as challenged intellectually and emotionally. As long as you are prepared and willing, you will enjoy it thoroughly. Also, be very prepared to learn as much, if not more, from your students.”

The teacher who most influenced Klimczak was Mr. Arthurs, her high school history teacher. “He not only challenged me intellectually but also challenged me to form an opinion on controversial and important topics. He pushed me to not only perform my best academically, but also that the more difficult path is sometimes the best, and most rewarding, path to take,” she says.

About Alfred Odierno

Why does Alfred Odierno teach? “I used to think it was to turn kids on to English and literature,” he says. “Now I realize it’s so much more: Teaching kids to be themselves, to think for themselves, to grow to be responsible, thoughtful adults happy with who they are, striving to do good and valuing both the ups and the downs that life brings us all.”

Odierno, a 35-year classroom veteran, teaches English at Bishop McNamara High School in Prince George’s County. He received a bachelor’s degree in English/Education from the State University of New York and a M.Ed. from the University of Virginia. He’s done post-graduate work in Shakespeare Studies at Georgetown University.

If he weren’t teaching, Odierno would be writing. “Our American language is so beautiful and can say so many things,” he says. “But I’m too lazy to sit down and do it, so I’d rather teach kids how to do it.”

When it comes to favorite moments in the classroom, “I have had thousands and no two are the same,” he says. “Seeing a former student go on to do great, celebrated things is as valuable as seeing a kid finally understand the difference between a subject and a verb.”

The two teachers who influenced Odierno most both taught English in his high school. “Mr. Hackett and Mr. Magro, one a total nerd the other Mr. Cool. Their different personalities showed me how English, and books and poetry and writing, belong to all of us no matter who we are,” he says.

The Catcher in the Rye and anything by William Shakespeare top Odierno’s list of favorite books. “Both show that the vast range of the human experience and emotion, from joy to despair, can be put into beautiful language to both celebrate, console and affirm the humanity of generations even yet unborn,” he says.

About Kristin Peton

Kristin Peton teaches “to bring out the creative sparks that are within every individual soul,” she says. An English/Language Arts Teacher at Bladensburg High School in Prince George’s County, has been an educator for three years. She received her B.A. in English from Penn State University.

If she weren’t a teacher, Peton would probably have been a writer “because I love the freedom that comes with losing yourself in a great novel, and I'd love to pass that on to other readers from my own writing,” she says.

The best piece of advice she’s received as a teacher is: “You're working too hard; it's the students who should be doing the work,” she says. Her own advice to new teachers is to “learn how to keep up on your grading.”

Another teacher who influenced her is Mr. Franck, who helped her “learn how to make great lesson plans, and for always giving great advice and lending a hand, and for being a great friend when I was just starting out,” she says. “Second only to Jesus Christ as a great teacher I've known.”

Peton’s father is the person she admires most. “He works hard and lets nothing stop him from acheiving his dreams; he never settles for second best,” she says.

Her favorite classroom moment occurred “when I received a handmade gift from a student who had initially said she hated me and my class, because it showed that people can be wrong about their first judgments and that change is always possible,” says Peton.

About Raymond D. Petty, Ph.D.

Raymond D. Petty, Ph.D. teaches because it is his calling. Having joined Prince George’s County Public Schools in 1992, Petty currently teaches social studies and AP Psychology at Surrattsville High School.

Petty holds a B.A. in Interdisciplinary, Biblical Studies/Vocal Music from Washington Bible College and a M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Bowie State University. He received his Doctor of Psychology, with a specialization in Educational Psychology, from Capella University in 2008.

Among his favorite moments as a teacher, Petty points to when the choir he directed at Potomac High School won first place in three categories at a regional choral competition and, this summer, when two of his AP students earned a 5, the highest score possible, on the AP exam.

Mr. Otha Davis, a middle school principal in Fairfax, Virginia, is the teacher Petty credits with influencing his career. “Mr. Davis is a well respected and extremely successful educator,” he says. “As an Administrator he has consistently demonstrated the highest commitment to his student’s academic achievement which is repeatedly reflected in outcomes.”

It is his father, who recently died of cancer, who Petty most admires. “He provided me with a work ethic that has been a continuous driving force in all aspects of my life,” he says. “I credit his guidance as a major factor in my ability to persevere and achieve my doctorate degree as well as always aspiring to high standards of integrity as a professional.”

The Mis-Education of the Negro by Dr. Carter G. Woodson is Petty’s favorite book because “it helps me stay mindful of some of the injustices and struggles that can impact education,” he says.

About Shazmin Ramcharan

“I know this may sound cliché, but I teach to make a difference in at least one life. I teach so my class can be an outlet for students,” says Shazmin Ramcharan, an English teacher at High Point High School.

Ramcharan, now in her third year as a teacher in Prince George’s County, received her undergraduate degree in Secondary Education English with a minor in Speech Communications from Eastern Michigan University. If hadn’t become a teacher, Ramcharan most likely would have become an accountant. “That was the other class that held my interest the most in high school,” she says.

Her favorite classroom moment occurred during her first year teaching in Maryland. “We had just got done reading and I opened the floor for any questions, comments, or concerns about the text. One girl opens the discussion with issues she had with her parents, another spoke about gangs, someone else talked about pregnancy,” she says. “I did not end the discussion because obviously my students needed to vent about these personal issues, but it was at that moment I realized teachers are more than just teachers; we are parents, older siblings, role models, or maybe just a listening ear for these students. I always tried to have a certain relationship with my students, and in that moment I realized I had succeeded.”

Ramcharan, herself, was influenced by her 12th-grade English teacher, Ms. Copp. “She made us do an intensive research paper in the middle of the year, and everything she taught us about MLA [a writing format] still resonates in my mind and is the reason that I do not use red ink grade papers,” she says. Ms. Copp also made Beowolf enjoyable with her many voices for Grendel’s mother. She was passionate about English, which made going to her class enjoyable.

About Ralph Sierra

“You will never learn a topic better than when you start teaching it,” says Ralph Sierra. “I remember my first year teaching Spanish II. I had taken Spanish related courses in college and thought I knew what I was doing. However, the student questions just made me dig deeper and learn more.” It is said that it takes three years of teaching to truly master a subject. Sierra, now in his sixth year of teaching Spanish at Parkdale High School in Prince George’s County, concurs.

Sierra’s favorite moments in the classroom occur when students apply the concepts he’s taught them to everyday situations. “I am most proud of the moments when students regardless of ethnicity, engage in a conversation in Spanish with me,” he says.

A graduate of Kutztown University – with a B.A.s in Spanish and General Education – Sierra earned his D.A.L.F in French from Université de Nancy II, in Nancy, France. To those considering education as a career, Sierra offers this advice: “You don't teach a class. You teach a group of individuals,” he says. “Whether it's a lecture or assignment or activity or fieldtrip, you must never forget that you are teaching unique students who happen to show up at the same time and at the same place.”

Sierra’s high school anthropology teacher, Mr. McIntosh, is the person he most admires. “Not only did he have a way of making the class exciting,” says Sierra, “but he took time to know me and introduced me to many things I would have never thought of experiencing on my own such as flea markets, farmers markets, coin shows, and community events.”

If he weren’t a teacher, Sierra would work for a nonprofit education organization. “I would like to continue my craft in education and work with underserved and underrepresented youths in urban areas in the United States,” he says.