LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Kentucky’s Teacher of the Year, Mandy Perez, along with other TOY's from across the country met in Washington, D.C. last week, getting the chance to hear from President Joe Biden and to have a town hall with First Lady Jill Biden.
In that meeting, Perez shared a cause that's close to her and the work she does as a 6th-grade English language arts teacher in Crittenden County — specializing in diversity in literature.
She says, "I find it very important to include every single child no matter how diverse they are or their background is, they need to know that they belong in the classroom."
Perez recalls that it was years before she saw literary figures that reflected her own culture. This past week, many also attended an International Summit of the Teaching Profession where she learned that the teacher shortage is a global issue — but not in Finland.
"They are treated with respect, they are treated with dignity. They only hire the best of the best. And I think that, that right there, hiring the best of the best was key,” says Perez.
Perez has been an educator for the last 19 years. She's the first in her family to graduate from college and to become a teacher. This Teacher's Appreciation Day, she shared an emotional story she brought back from her experience in D.C.
She shares, "Dr. Biden shared with us that day a story about her grandmother and her grandmother passing away and leaving behind for her not an estate as a legacy but a classroom bell -- her grandmother was a teacher. And I remember sitting there in that front row... 'oh how awesome it would be if I had something similar to that...’"
She got it, a brass bell that is not only a memory of her time at the White House, but a symbol of the powerful legacy education can leave behind.
She says, “I was like 'oh my gosh, Dr. Biden doesn't even recognize what she's just done for me.' So it was truly special."
Perez says she has students from across her career that she still keeps in touch with, adding the connection between teachers and their students can go far beyond the classroom.
"They have to know that you're real. That's always been the biggest thing that I’ve always said, that I’m real. They get me because I’m real — what you see is what you get."
Perez believes educators across the country share the same passion for growth and learning and they're all in it for the right reasons.
