Returning home for my first month-long college winter break was the best feeling. The moment I finished my last final, I could smell my mom's cooking and feel my bed. I found myself in more than one familiar place. Last winter break, I visited my high school.
I attended a small high school so the receptionist greeted me warmly as soon as I entered the building, I chatted with my underclassmen and answered the same questions again and again. Most importantly, I got to visit my favorite teachers.
As usual, they asked me how my first semester of college had been and how long I would be on break. Seeing them after a few months was not awkward at all. We chatted as if I was meeting them during office hours instead of during school hours.
Students are often told to foster good relationships with their professors in order to secure a good recommendation letter. A good recommendation letter is important, but continuing to keep in touch with teachers is beneficial in many ways.
Emailing my teachers allows me to know how they are doing and also receive advice. Universities have plenty of academic advisers and counselors, but having an already trusted person makes it easier to ask for advice. If you were very close to your former teacher, they know your strengths, weaknesses, and personality. Moreover, they know how you perform in certain academic environments and where you should be challenging yourself.
Continual contact with a former teacher strengthens connections. The career center is always emphasizing networking and reaching out to different companies at career fairs. An old teacher can inform you about new opportunities that they believe you will be interested in (remember they know you!) or offer to nominate you.
For example, this past winter break, my English teacher asked me if I would be willing to tutor or help juniors and seniors write personal statements and college essays over the summer. I was hoping to find a job in the summer and now one was presented to me.
Teachers are people too and want to see what their former students did after graduation.
They remember the conversations you had in the hallway or the wacky club memories you made together. It may feel weird to keep in touch at first; let's be real, you probably don't talk to most of your former classmates anymore. However, keeping in touch with your favorite teacher is as easy as asking them how they are doing. Your teachers are just another friend. You spent three-four years together, why not continue that relationship beyond high school?
