March Blog #2...at the buzzer.

Nothing like waiting until the last minute to finish the blogs…I still have 18 minutes until its technically late…

So, I know by now next year’s class is either set, or close to it, and blogs are an excellent way for the new guys to sort of get a feel for what they’re in store for next fall. With apologies to David Letterman, here are the Top 10 reasons to be a part of the Mississippi Teacher Corps.

10.) It’s a free masters. Honestly, this is a sweet deal. You get a Master’s done in two years for free while working a full-time job and getting paid real money. The coursework is not overly demanding and you save big bucks by getting your school work paid for.

9.) If you don’t teach here, who will? It’s called a teacher shortage, folks. Everybody’s feeling the pinch, but nowhere worse than in the Delta. People HAVE to be in the classrooms, and if its not you, who knows who it might be.

8.) If you want to feel like you are making a difference, now is the time to do it. For the most part, we are all fairly recent college graduates, and for the most part, we are still idealistic enough to believe that we can make a difference. I just don’t know if we’re capable of holding on to that idealism after too long in the “real world.”

7.) You need to see what’s going on first-hand. People talk about the problems that are plaguing our nation’s schools and sometimes you just need to see it to believe it. Luckily for me, my school’s not perfect, but I haven’t seen anything that sends shivers up my spine, but after listening to some of my classmates…it happens.

6.) To steal from CBS’s catchphrase regarding the Master’s golf tournament, “The Delta, a tradition unlike any other.” The Delta is so unique, with its own culture and history and way of life that is amazing in so many different ways. I mean, on my way to school, I pass some of the most historical places in the world if you are a fan of the Blues, but at the same time, I drive through some of the most pitiful places in the country to live. The juxtaposition of historical value and poverty is mind-blowing.

5.) If you are white, it’s interesting and eye opening to be in the minority. Since I lived in Argentina for two years prior to joining the Teacher Corps, this was nothing new to me, but it’s still an interesting and insightful experience to try and fit in where it seems like you may not belong.

4.) The kids need you. Honestly. This may be related to number 9, but it’s different. The kids need to see someone that has high expectations for them and someone that can fill them with hope. To see someone come from the outside and be helpful, friendly, and outgoing is refreshing…after they realize that you WANT to be there and are not looking at them as charity cases.

3.) Mississippi needs you. Some of us have done service world-wide, be it Peace Corps or in my case, a religious mission, but as much help as the rest of the world needs, we need it right here in Mississippi as well. Our contributions may be small and the results may not be immediately visible, but helping out the kids and trying our best to make sure they become independent thinkers, capable of learning on their own, and thinking critically is imperative to the effort to keep this state from falling further behind. An educated work force is one of the best ways to assure that businesses invest in this state. It’s a vicious circle, and right now Mississippi’s out of the loop and we’re trying to break in.

2.) You’ll learn more about yourself than you think. Heck, I’ve been me my whole life…I would think that I knew myself pretty well, but when you are responsible for the education of 135 kids, you put a lot of pressure on yourself to do it right. I won’t say it’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever done because I know its not, but the pressures and the responsibilities are different than anything most of us have ever done. You’ll learn a lot when you’re under the gun…hopefully not literally…but hey, it’s a possibility!

1.) Why the heck not? Honestly. What else can you be doing? If it weren’t for the Mississippi Teacher Corps, I would probably be working ungodly hours for ridiculously pitiful pay producing TV newscasts with an entry-level job. If I don’t like teaching, an entry-level job is still going to be there waiting for me. All I did was take two years doing something very respectable and made more money at it than I would have using my degree. Sometimes I feel bad because, if I do say so myself, I thought I could be pretty dang good in the field of broadcast journalism. But my professor for my capstone class in TV news reporting told me, “we need more good teachers than we need good TV reporters. Go be good in a place where we need you most.”