on teaching

this fall i had the opportunity to teach finance to adults finishing their degree at JBU.  when i decided to stay home, i knew if i worked again it would be doing something i was truly passionate about like education.  reflecting on my previous jobs, the ones i enjoyed most were co-teaching/tutoring at JBU and being a summer camp counselor.  i enjoy building relationships and encouraging others in subjects they may dislike (i.e. math), so when asked to teach (very part time) at JBU i knew it was something i wanted to pursue.

i just finished my first class and definitely will teach more if asked.  i've been praying for my students for a couple of months and even though i only got five weeks in the classroom with them, i hope their lives were positively impacted.  today i received an email from a student affirming my decision to teach (sorry for tooting my own horn but i want to document important life events).

Silvy,

I just checked my grades.  Are you kidding me?  Did I really pass this class?  And an A, OMG!

Thank you for your patience and engaging presentation of the ridiculously intimidating material.  I have a CFO that is kind of arrogant about his understanding of financial principals and my lack thereof.  I had him look at my practice exam, kind of looking for his approval/acknowledgement of my effort to learn.  He actually said, "Oh, you're actually taking real classes?"

I just wanted to let you know, that while I certainly did not learn everything there is to know about finances and financial math, I gained confidence in my ability to comprehend and understand the basics.  I will build on the fundamentals you helped me to learn. I will no longer allow him to bully me (not sure that is really what he intends, but it is how I let myself feel when dealing with him) into thinking I do not have something valuable to contribute to financial decisions about the organization I am ultimately responsible for, that by the way has an 8 million dollar operating budget.

Sorry this is late.  I felt compelled to let you know personally that you were instrumental in probably one of the most uplifting and valuable educational opportunities of my career.

Thank you!
sweet words.  love you all and hope you get the opportunity to do something you love!!