I am not a teacher for the outstanding salary. I am not a teacher for the 7 a.m. clock-in time. And I am definitely not a teacher for the state-mandated standards.

I am a teacher because interacting with the sometimes-mature, usually immature teenage personalities never fails to entertain me. Teachers have the unique privilege every day to work hands on with some of the greatest types of people: children. Whether they are first-graders of students working towards their master's degrees, they are, generally, challenging, fun, spunky, wonderfully spontaneous individuals. I could go on and on about why working with kids is actually the best, but I’m going to let the words of my fellow teachers speak to this.

I am a teacher because with teaching, every single day gives you a chance to, in some way, be a hero for the students you love. Why would I want to spend my life doing anything else? – Kacie Morris, 8^th grade language arts

I am a teacher because it allows me to interact with kids every day and feel like I'm making an impact on their lives. I feel like I help guide teenagers in more ways than just how to pick out a verb. I also love that I work with people who are dedicated to what they do and who believe in education. – Beth Celenza, 12^th grade English

I am a teacher because there is nothing better than seeing my students run around the gym floor laughing and smiling during game play. – Steve Graves, gym teacher

I am a teacher because I believe it's important for students, and people in general, to be able to write so they can express themselves, and to read to be a part of a larger conversation, and to think, because their beliefs matter. – Angela Faulhaber, teacher education professor

I am a teacher because seeing teenagers’ minds at work is the raddest thing ever. – Brittany Blevins, 10^th grade English

I am a teacher because for years I wallowed in jobs to pay the bills spending most of my time watching the clock. Teaching is a job that requires my intellect and especially my creativity to respond daily to the people right in front of me, to find unique ways to excite their curiosity and imagination. I enjoy every minute of the teaching process, and the results are the sweetener. – Marc Nachowitz, literacy/language arts professor

I am a teacher for that aha moment! I teach for the pride the students get when they grasp the curriculum. I teach to be a role model to our youth. –Theresa Dorgan, vice principal

We are not teachers for the pay, the hours, the standards and restrictions, or for anything other than the rewards the job gives us. What’s better than watching a student’s face light up as they understand a complex concept or standing in as their biggest role model? The important and influential, yet challenging, role as a teacher is comparable to none.