Two years ago when I started my journey in pursuing and completing a Masters in Education and licensure in special education at George Mason University, it was a means to an end. It was a means to support my family, raise my children, give back to the community, and create an identity for myself. At the time my goal was to finish my degree and obtain a teaching license. I figured once I accomplished that goal I would find something else to put my efforts towards. As I moved closer to completing my Masters degree, I started creating a new goal of pursuing and completing a Ph.D. in Education, so that I could become a leader in the education community.

          After I completed my Bachelors of Science Degree from East Carolina University, I spent the next seven years of my professional career bouncing around from industry to industry, lay off to lay off, and job to job. I have worked in a Fortune 50 company, helped start a dot.com company, and worked for several consulting companies. I have assisted in the writing of a Certificate of Public Need for a hospital, proposals and grants for organizations, created information technology manuals, and lectured to various audiences. I have managed over 20 employees and million dollar budgets; however, nothing has ever given me the satisfaction like teaching in a classroom and watching a student learn.

          For the past three years, I have been teaching at a private therapeutic day school for adolescents with emotional and learning disabilities. Every day is a challenge, every day is different, and every day is a learning experience for me. I cherish the relationships that I have built with my students, I am confident of their success, and I believe in their future. With my students help, I have learned where I can improve as a teacher and how I can connect with them as a person. I believe that establishing a positive relationship with each of my students will help them become more available for learning.

          As I took each class in my Masters program, I learned about more tools and techniques to instruct my students, to work with my peers, and to become a better teacher. Towards the end of my Masters degree, I started thinking about the future and what I was going to do next. There is no doubt that I want to stay in the classroom, but not necessarily a high school classroom with emotionally disabled students. I have thought about a leadership role and being an administrator for a therapeutic school. In this position, I would be able to hire qualified teachers who have the compassion and drive to work with special populations. As an administrator, I will be able to give the teachers the support and the framework that they need to do their job successfully. Then I realized that if I got a Ph.D. in Education, I would receive leadership training, hands-on research experience, and the practical experience in teaching on the university level. In addition, the Ph.D. program will train me in the most effective research methods to help me find the best classroom management approaches, new learning strategies, and ways for the students to manage their anxiety and stress, in order to help them become more available for learning.

          My whole life I have had an internal drive to better myself, to reach for the highest goals, and to help others. When I was younger second place was great, but I always strived for first place because it was one step higher. To me completing a Ph.D. in Education will fulfill a childhood dream of earning a doctorate degree and will satisfy my internal drive to better myself. In addition, a Ph.D. in education will give me a greater chance of helping other individuals reach their potential. I know the Ph.D. program will not be easy, and it will be time consuming, stressful, and hard. However, I am confident that I have the time management, organizational and academic skills to accomplish the task.

          A Ph.D. in Education from George Mason University would give me the education, training, and experience to become an outstanding university professor, researcher, and leader in the education community. I believe that I have found my true calling in education and the teaching field. I love being in the classroom but I also want to help future teachers find their passion as I have found mine. I believe a Ph.D. in Education from George Mason University will help me achieve my future goals and dreams.