September  2007   Teacher of the Month

My name is Laura Howze and I am a 1995 graduate of Santa Anna High School. My family moved to Santa Anna when I was in the Sixth Grade; prior to that I had attended school in Brownwood. I remember being scared to death to move to a different school and a different town. I quickly fell in love with the small school and small town atmosphere. I truly believe that I have accomplished my dreams as a result of so many people in this community, teachers and others, who challenged me and encouraged me to follow my heart.  

 For as long as I can remember I have always loved to learn and wanted to be a teacher. My family loves to tell everyone that as a child I would come home from school each day, line my dolls up in chairs and “teach” them whatever I had learned at school that day.  

After graduating from high school, I began attending Howard Payne University in the fall of 1995. During this time I worked as a part time clerk at Phillips Drug Store until it closed and then began working full time as a Pharmacy Technician at Eckerd Pharmacy in Brownwood. I discovered I loved pharmacy work and enjoyed the challenges and learning experiences I faced each day. However, I still believed that teaching was where I should be, so I kept on pursuing a teaching career and graduated from Howard Payne in May 2000. After deciding to take a year off before teaching, I applied and began teaching here in Santa Anna in November 2001. It is hard to believe that at the end of this school year I will have been teaching here for six years.

 I currently teach 5^th & 6^th grade Math and Science and 6^th Social Studies and Computers.  I have also taught 3^rd grade Math, Science, and Social Studies and 4^th grade Science. I love what I do and I appreciate what I have learned from each and every student that I have taught! It is my goal to get to know each child and begin to see how they learn best. When I have a student who is struggling, it becomes a challenge for me to figure out how to find a way for them to understand it. I love to see their faces when the light comes on and they understand. The joy in their expressions makes my job worthwhile.   

It is incredible to see the closeness of the staff and to know that I have their support and guidance.  I have learned so much from everyone here and have been honored to be taken in as part of the “family”. 

I truly hope that retirement still finds me teaching at this great school. Teaching has been my lifelong dream and I am pleased to say that it has been as rewarding and fulfilling as I ever imagined it could be.