After teaching for 21 years in the Gardner Edgerton district, Lacy Hinkle decided to take up the position as the IR Frosh SPED teacher at GEHS this year.

“This is my 22nd year of teaching,” Hinkle said. “I have taught all 21 years prior to this in the Gardner School District. I taught at Moonlight Elementary for 12 years and Madison Elementary for 9 years.”

After working in elementary schools for so many years, Hinkle wanted to try something else.

“I wanted to try something different… and so I thought teaching at the high school would be a new experience for me,” Hinkle said.

Hinkle has wanted to teach ever since she was young. In high school, she did an internship where she worked in different classrooms and schools, and from that point on she decided she was going to go to college to become a teacher.

“…Since probably fourth grade I’ve wanted to be a teacher…” Hinkle said. “I enjoy working with kids, I love watching kids make progress and succeed. It’s a very rewarding position.”

Hinkle’s greatest challenge is making sure each student is getting what they need to be successful.

“[My greatest challenge is] probably… [making] sure every student is getting what they need to be successful because that looks really different depending on the student,” she said.

Hinkle has gotten better at overcoming this challenge by learning more about the student.

“I think learning more about the student and what works for them and what doesn’t work for them and helping them build on their strengths has helped me be a better teacher,” Hinkle said.

As a teacher, every day is different for Hinkle, which is her favorite part about what she does.

“[My favorite part about teaching is] that every day is different. Every day, something changes, and you never really know what to expect. But, there’s always good in every day,” Hinkle said.