My+Autobiography

I hope you enjoy!
Usually an autobiography is just a laundry list of events in a person’s life that begins at birth. Instead, I feel that the story that explains how I have become an educator comes from several different sources. My first educational influence, even though we never met, was my grandfather Archie Lee Morgan. He was the first African American principal in Tulsa, Oklahoma in the 1930s. He began as a middle school English teacher and football coach before moving on to becoming a middle school and then high school principal. Different areas of both schools are named after him, which is a great accomplishment.

My mother is his fourth and youngest daughter. She was the only child to become a teacher. Receiving her Bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State, she decided to move away from home and go to graduate school at the University of Missouri close to St. Louis. It was here that she was set up on a blind date with my father at a bowling alley through a mutual friend. They eventually got married and had my big sister two years later. My father at the time was a butcher, and his company moved him and my family to Memphis nine years later. I was born about a year afterwards on July 10, 1983.

When I was born, my mother was 39 years old and my father 40, so my parents were seasoned to say the least. They always encouraged me to pursue whatever path I wanted. My household was very calm with everyone so much older. I can only remember my sister in high school so she was more of a second mother. I was instantly academically competitive. I never remember being told to do my homework. I would come straight home from school, do my homework, and then go outside. I wasn’t sure of what I wanted to do until fourth grade, which I found was earlier than most. My teacher asked me to help another student with their math work since I finished early. It was very rewarding to me to be able to assist them, and I knew then that I wanted that feeling as my career.

From that point on, I felt like I had a purpose and mission to fulfill. I tried to learn and read as much as I could, so that I could teach others. I joined countless extra-curricular activities through the years such as ballet, tap, gymnastics, church organizations, community service organizations, track and field, piano and band. My junior high and high school years flew by in a whirlwind of classes, part-time jobs, meetings, and practices.

The highlight of my adolescence was my opportunity to visit Egypt and Ghana. I was well traveled, having visited most major cities up until this point through my social and school groups, but this was definitely the icing on the cake. The summer before my junior year of high school, my mother and I traveled there through my aunt’s church youth group. I can say that I have been inside the Great Pyramids and seen this amazing Wonder of the World first-hand. In Ghana, though, was the highlight of the trip on my visit to a village school. Seeing the determination and respect for education in a school in a developing country makes one realize how valuable it really is and how much we take what we have in this country for granted. Those children’s enthusiasm for learning reassured me of what I wanted to become.

I finished high school with honors and a variety of leadership and life experiences. I decided to attend Tennessee State University for my undergraduate degree. My experiences there were worthwhile and I feel that TSU adequately prepared me for becoming an educator. I wasn’t sure of whether or not to move back home or to stay in the city and teach while earning my graduate degree. The day after graduation, I was at work in my restaurant job that I’d kept mostly throughout college. In conversation with one of my customers, I met my future principal. With the decision made, I began teaching 5th grade at W.A. Bass Middle. My leadership positions have included grade level chair for the 2007-2008 year, Language! Chair for two years, sponsor of the Student Council, and membership and participation in as many committees and activities as I can.

This past school year, I became officially tenured. With this accomplishment, I decided it was time to return for graduate school. Although previously, my dream was just to become a teacher, now that I’ve done it, I’ve extended my goals much higher. I hope to open my own school for upper elementary to middle school aged girls. My intent is to educate as well as give positive influences and experiences with a graduation ceremony geared towards a transition into womanhood. With the increase of negative female influences in the media, I feel that by truly understanding the role of the woman, the girls will make more wise choices in their own lives, therefore affecting a generation of change. In my time outside my career, I still participate in various social organizations and constantly work to improve myself in order to better help someone in the future. I am an ordinary person with aspirations to do the extraordinary to honor those who, whether directly or indirectly, had an impact on my life and fulfill my purpose to the utmost. 