‘Teaching is my heart’ — Heather Herron
This year’s Swain Middle School Teacher of the Year is none other than eighth grade math teacher Heather Herron.
Herron was nominated and voted on by fellow teachers and staff members.
“I hope my peers selected me because they see I give my all to our students, school and faculty,” said Herron. “I love to teach. I can’t imagine myself ever doing anything else and have never considered doing anything else for the last 31-and-a-half years. I really enjoy helping the entire school with anything.”
Herron could retire but is not finished teaching just yet.
“Some days, I drag myself to school, already tired of facing the day,” she said. “Then, I see their faces, hear their voices and feel their hugs. Sometimes the students are hard, but I still love them. I want what is best for them. I want to give my best to them. I want to help others give their best. So, as mushy as it sounds … it’s them. I have the opportunity to help someone every day. It is like a gift I can give and it really is better to give. My reason isn’t altruistic. I get more from teaching them than I can ever give to them. They make me a better, more understanding person every day. Their youth, strength and resilience are restorative for me. It is tiring but restores my soul.”
Swain County Schools truly holds Herron’s heart.
“My grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, cousins and children have been part of Swain County Schools, serving as school board members, teachers, cafeteria manager and students,” said Herron. “Swain County is home. I want our schools to be the best for our students.”
Herron’s parents were teachers.
“I have several other family members who are teachers,” she said. “I grew up living the life. I knew early on I was going to be a teacher. I earned an N.C. Teaching Fellows Scholarship as a senior.”
Herron attended UNC-Chapel Hill, WCU and UNC-Charlotte. She started teaching at Swain County Schools Jan. 3, 1994.
“As a young teacher, I looked up to the veteran teachers for advice, help, guidance, strength,” Herron said. “As a longtime teacher, I look to the younger teachers for enthusiasm, exuberance and stamina. When I look at the teachers around me, they remind me that I can do more … that I can do better. I am in awe of how hard the teachers at the Middle school work and the awesome things they do. I am continually trying to learn from them so I can improve and be better for my students.”
However, Herron’s children have served as her greatest influences.
“I have two very different kids,” she said. “They are probably my greatest influencers now. Deciding what I do in class or work on at school is through the lens of these two. I think about our plans or policies through the lens of ‘is this beneficial to them?’ If I am happy that my kids will be participating or affected by policies, then, most likely all students will benefit.”
Herron thanked her peers for this year’s nomination and votes.
“We are all here, in the trenches, working as hard as can,” she said. “So, for them to feel that I somehow helped them in a meaningful way makes me happy.”
She shared three decades worth of advice with other educators.
“It will be OK,” Herron said. “Don’t take everything so seriously. Don’t wear your feelings on your sleeve or they will get knocked off and stomped. You are the adult. Get over it. Laugh instead of crying. Spend a lot of your time teaching them how to be a person in society. Every student deserves an adult in the school who believes in them and roots for them. All need a safe place to fail. Every one of them deserves a time during the day when they are proud of themselves. Where they feel successful. Where they feel worthy and loved. Too many times, too many kids don’t have these. They never feel success. They feel they aren’t smart enough; aren’t athletic enough; aren’t cool enough; aren’t pretty enough; just aren’t enough.”
She quoted Dr. Temple Grandin in stating, “I want them to see that we are all ‘different, not less.’”
“As a young teacher, my job focus was curriculum,” Herron said. “I didn’t have time to love the kids … man, did I waste many years and miss a lot of joy. I look back on my first years of teaching and I am embarrassed. Those children deserved so much more than I gave them. As I learned from more experienced teachers, I saw I was not the teacher I should be. Every day, for as many students as I can, I need to be that safe place. I need to help them find joy and excitement in learning. I need to make them see their worth.”
While Herron has remained “curriculum driven,” she has broadened her definition of what is means to be a teacher. This means meeting the emotional and social needs of her students.
“The science and math around us is so amazing and exciting,” she said. “I want my students to remember when they asked, ‘why?’ and truly wanted to know. I want to see that wonderment and determination in finding out as much as possible. I love, ‘But, why? But, why?’ If I can awaken that by sharing my enthusiasm, I have succeeded.”
On a side note, Herron said she has been told more than once that no one should get as excited as she does about solving quadratics, square roots, studying photosynthesis or chemical reactions.
“But, let me tell you, they are marvelous and amazing,” Herron said.
Swain County Middle School Principal Ryan McMahan shared his appreciation for Herron.
“If you’ve ever stepped into Mrs. Herron’s classroom, you know just how much she loves her students and believes in their potential,” said McMahan. “She pours her heart into everything she does, always looking for new and creative ways to help her students succeed. Her dedication, kindness and passion for teaching make a difference in so many lives every day.”
Upcoming features will include Rachael Lewis, East Elementary Teacher of the Year; MaryAnne Zelenka, West Elementary Teacher of the Year; and Rebecca Perry, Bright Adventure Pre-K Teacher of the Year. A special thanks goes out to all the hard work our teachers do.