Sunday, November 4, 2001
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Sunday, November 4, 2001 |
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Fayette Middle teacher wins scholarship
Out of 260 applications submitted, a teacher from Fayette Middle School is one of three in Georgia and South Carolina combined to be awarded a $2,300 scholarship for National Board Certification from State Farm Insurance. Joy Martin, who teaches sixth-grade science, is the first teacher in the county and one of two in the state to receive the scholarship. Each year, State Farm offers a scholarship program to help offset expenses for teachers who are seeking their National Board Certification, which costs $2,300. The insurance company only awards a total of three scholarships in each geographic region. "When we first heard about the scholarship, many of my peers said that they weren't going to bother with it because the odds of winning were too slim," said Martin. "I think that Fayette County has the highest quality of teachers anywhere so I thought why can't someone from the county win." The application consisted of five questions focusing on the individual's teaching philosophies and why he or she was seeking National Board Certification. When Martin sat down to complete the questions, she says she simply let her heart lead her fingers as she typed the answers. "I just poured my heart out and I completed the application in two hours," she said. "I thought that maybe my application would shine because I had said what was in my heart." The very first question on the application was, "Why did you become a teacher?" That question is one that Martin has no trouble answering. "Teaching is a gift of the heart that you can give over and over," she said. "If you truly want to teach, it has to come from the heart. "When you remember teachers who had an influence on your life, you remember what subject they taught you but you don't remember the specific subject matter. What you remember is how they were in the classroom, their caring heart and how they encouraged you to always do your best." As far as seeking her National Board Certification, Martin says it is a scary process because so few people have achieved national certification, but she is looking forward to the challenge. She will spend the rest of the year completing certification requirements. The last part of the certification process requires applicants to take a rigorous standardized test on teaching skills. Martin will know whether or not she passed all of the national certification requirements sometime in Nov. 2002. "I have always been a trailblazer in everything that I have ever done. I know the process is going to help me learn a lot about my teaching abilities and in the end will make me a better teacher," she said. "I know the rewards will be more than I can ever imagine." Martin says she is already feeling some of the rewards of the national certification process by winning the State Farm scholarship. However, the way she found out she won nearly brought her to her knees. "I was in a meeting when someone came over the intercom and said that Mr. Maxwell [school principal] needed to see Ms. Martin in his office," she recalled. "When I got there I was trembling and wondering what I had done wrong. I was told that there was an angry parent on the phone. When I answered it, the public relations guy from State Farm told me I had won. I was absolutely thrilled." Martin began her teaching career 11 years ago in Fayette County. After her children started school, Martin decided that is was time to put her education degree to use. She started off as a substitute teacher. Martin was assigned to Fayette Middle the first day she substituted. She continued to substitute for a year, then a hiring freeze followed. The year after the freeze, she was hired as a science teacher at the school and she is now entering into her ninth year at Fayette Middle. "I loved my first day at the school. The other teachers and administrators were wonderful," Martin said. "When I left that day I thought this is where I want to teach."
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