This month’s teacher spotlight is Jessica Humphrey! Jessica just started her sixth year of teaching and is currently with Jordan School District. Her nominator provided an esteemed review, stating that “Jessica is the teacher who saves students from the math abyss. As a counselor, I interact with many students who avoid math at all cost, but when they have Ms. Humphrey as a teacher, things start to click; avoidance turns into completed assignments and failure turns into success... If I could, I would have Jessica share her teaching techniques with all of her colleagues to make sure no student falls through the cracks...Her patience and desire to help remove the fear of getting the problem wrong is amazing to watch. The best part about her class is that students feel valued and accepted in her class, even if a C is their best! I wish I would have had her as a math teacher when I was a kid”.
Since high school, Jessica has been offering her assistance to her fellow classmates. She fondly recalls a memory of helping a particular classmate in college, and when he reached his “aha!” moment, the joy on his face was “incomparable”, and so she switched from being an accounting major to math education.
As a teacher, Jessica feels the most rewarding part of teaching is getting to know her students. She loves making those connections that extend beyond the classroom, and feels proud in contributing to their success.
When asked what she thought the most important thing about teaching math to kids, Jessica replied, “I think the most important aspect of teaching math is being able to give students a sense of confidence in their abilities. So many people in the world hate math and say, ‘I’m not good at math and I never will be,’ as if it’s a talent you either do or do not have, rather than a skill to be developed. Many students that are ‘not good’ at math just have no confidence. They second guess themselves and then give up. Starting a school year by helping my students to realize that they do have a good foundation of skill, no matter how basic, and that they can build it from there, always makes for a good year”.
When she is not teaching, Jessica can be found enjoying landscape photography, and even though she isn’t particularly fond of hiking, the shots they produce are so worth it!
On behalf of the Utah State Board of Education, we would like to thank Jessica for making those strong connections with her students, and helping them succeed, especially when they doubted themselves and didn’t think they could. Thank you for your outstanding contributions to mathematics education.