i see students and parents on my block and at the grocery store

linda wilson

GYO Peoria Program Coordinator

Peoria, Illinois

I’ve lived in Peoria all my life and attended public schools here. I was a young mom, but I continued to go to school. My husband and I have five children.

Around 2008, our school district announced that it was going to become part of Grow Your Own. I was a teacher’s aide at the time. I had been in school at Illinois Central College, but just taking classes here and there.

They encouraged non-traditional students like me to join the process and I was selected. It was like a godsend. Before, I had no idea how I was going to complete my degree. I didn’t know if I was going to have to beg and borrow from family members. It motivated me because I had mentors in the program and because there were other people who were like me and had some of the same challenges, juggling school, families and jobs. It really helped us bond. When other students were down, others would pick them up.

With the stipend and forgiveable loans, I was able to go full-time to Bradley University, where I got my bachelor’s in early childhood education.

There were so many components to the program that were just so helpful. A couple of times I went to Chicago for the statewide networking meeting and I was able to listen to (Stanford University professor) Linda Darling-Hammond and network with other teachers across the state. I got training and leadership development that would help me as a teacher.

Since I graduated, I’ve been teaching 2nd grade. I’m going into my fifth year at the same school. My school is three blocks away from my house. I see students and parents on my block and at the grocery store. I’m really invested in my community and my students.

I got my masters last May from St Xavier University in curriculum and instruction. I’m close to graduating another program to get a second masters in educational administration.

I’m interested in helping with the effort to increase minority recruitment. The Peoria school district has 14,000 students, and about 50 to 60 percent are African American. But only 6.7 percent of teachers are African American. The district wants to expand recruitment to include candidates who are already in college and bring in high school students who have not decided about their career and encourage them to be teachers.

We also have a huge need for men in our district. We have an ever-growing population of Latino students. So we need more of a melting pot, more diversity in the teaching force.

The three words I think about with Grow Your Own are door-opening, possibilities and ground breaking. I was so thankful that I was there at the right time and in the right space. I went from being a teenage mom to being a teacher with a bachelor’s and two masters degrees. It just opened so many doors for me. I don’t know of any other way that I would have been able to afford school and get the support to encourage me to finish.  There’s probably someone just like me who just needs the door opened and to be encouraged so one day they’ll be able to help students as a teacher.

The community wants great teachers. And this program produces quality teachers. We have high GPAs. We continue our education by pursuing masters’ degrees. Now we’re invested in the communities and teaching children inside and outside the classroom. We’re making sure students learn and they’re successful. Businesses and corporations could financially support a program like this, especially with Illinois moving toward a teacher shortage that could have an impact on the quality of education that our students receive.