After every weekend on a cold sunny morning, Diana Brown, a teacher in Wayne Valley High School, wakes up to teach her marketing classes in the same school she once frequented. Now, she feels a deep sense of nostalgia and pride, knowing she has come full circle in the very place that shaped her.
As Brown reflects on her time as a Wayne Valley student, she recalls it fondly for many reasons. She believes Valley provided her with a strong foundation for college which made her transition to college smooth. “College was actually easy for me,” explains Brown, crediting Valley for preparing her for the obstacles there. Her time in Valley and in college taught her the importance of connecting with people with diverse backgrounds. Then teaching in Paterson broadened this perspective and exposed her to a varied population. All of these experiences fueled her creativity as a teacher, leading up to her becoming a teacher at her home high school, Wayne Valley.
“I love teaching but I don’t really like grading,” laughs Brown, acknowledging the irony. Because of her love for teaching, she plans to be dedicated to the profession and her students until the day she retires.
As a student at Wayne Valley, Brown was an athlete in field hockey and track. Playing these sports, however, she reflects back on what she could have done before. She wishes she had joined more clubs so that she could have possibly explored her different interests. For her students, she hopes for greater involvement as well and confidence in high school, a quality she wishes she had embraced herself as a student in Wayne Valley.
Outside the classroom, Mrs. Brown has a full and rewarding life as a mother of three. Her family is very important to her and she spends most of her freetime with them. Even though she might be exercising, reading, or even enjoying quiet times at home, she still has time to balance it all out with work.
Mrs. Brown strives to model the same care in her work that she gives her children back at home. The love for her family and students run deep in her community as well here in Wayne. She isn’t looking to go anywhere else because she’s happy with where she is right now. Finding her job made her find fulfillment in the relationship she’s built with her students, friends and even her childhood community.
For her, teaching isn’t just a job or just a daily thing, but also a way to impact others peoples lives. She plans to continue to inspire her students. Her life is a reminder that teaching is more than what we think, but about connections, embracing diversity, and inspiring students and the people in your life.
