Educator of the Year
 

Taking a mandatory class that involves giving speeches is difficult for any high schooler. To a teenager with anxiety and ADD, it seems impossible. Throughout my time at school, I was terrible at controlling my fear. I even told  my teachers I didn’t have my presentations done so I wouldn’t have to present--I prefered zeros to speaking in front of my classes.
That’s why when I walked to my ninth hour all-girls English class the first day of sophomore year, my mind filled with dread. When I entered the classroom, I expected Mrs. Whitehaus to be intimidating and strict. Instead, I was greeted by a young, red-headed teacher with a poster of Katniss Everdeen pinned above her desk.
“Hello!” she said energetically, her eyes lighting up from behind her glasses.
I glanced around the room at the walls decorated with pictures, quotes, and posters from her favorite books. Mrs. Whitehaus even had posters and a themed calendar of my favorite series of all time, Harry Potter. Immediately, I knew she was a teacher I’d relate to. As the class went on, I realized Mrs. Whitehaus and I had more in common--we were interested in the same music genre.
“My daughter’s name is Jovi Rose,” Mrs. Whitehaus said. “After my two favorite rock stars--Jon Bon Jovi and Axl Rose.”
Mrs. Whitehaus is like Robin Williams in the Dead Poet’s Society--she’s able to relate to every student and make class interesting. She made my first speech less intimidating by making it about music. She told me to choose three songs that changed my life and explain why. I chose “Maggie May” by Rod Stewart--the song I’m named after, “Cancer” by My Chemical Romance--the song about my grandparents, and “Never Let This Go” by Paramore--a song that helped me through freshman year. For extra credit, I burned a CD of other songs that impacted me. Mrs. Whitehaus listened to every CD she was given and wrote reviews on them. In her class, I wrote some of the most intriguing and creative speeches I’ve ever written.
Mrs. Whitehaus was more than an enthusiastic teacher. She noticed that I was struggling both socially and academically and went out of her way to help me. For example, she met with my parents to discuss my struggles with anxiety and ADD. She related to me by saying that she also struggled with the same thing. Mrs. Whitehaus was more than just a teacher. She was a mentor and a role model.