By Reporter: Ethan Fowler
The Albany Herald
May 6, 2010
ALBANY, Ga. — It didn’t take long for Nichelle Hightower to see that she had a calling to become a teacher.
This became clear to her after reluctantly going to work with her mother, a nurse, at the mental retardation unit of a mental health facility.
Because Hightower said she was ignorant and fearful of how people with disabilities would act, she was hesitant. But her uneasiness soon dissipated.
“To my surprise, working with my mother sparked an interest and genuine love for working with people with disabilities,” said Hightower, a second-grade teacher at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary and one of eight finalists for the Dougherty County School System’s Teacher of the Year award. “Because of this chance encounter at my mother’s job, my desire to become a teacher grew more each day.”
This desire — coupled with inspirational fifth-grade teacher Juanita Freeman’s influence — helped Hightower decide to became a special education teacher for the first 10 years of her 13-year career.
“There is no greater accomplishment than having children succeed,” she wrote in her teacher of the year application. “I also consider it a great accomplishment to serve in the many leadership roles within the school. This demonstrates that I have become both a role model for my students and for my colleagues.”
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