
Lydia Heintzelman has been teaching for three years- going for her fourth. In those years, she has made an impact on students.
Heintzelman is one of the English teachers here.
“I teach 10th-grade English and 12th-grade English, and I also am the teacher for the BSA program we have here,” Heintzelman said. “It’s the Blazer Success Academy, so I teach English for them as well.”
Heintzelman has loved her time here as a teacher.
“I love working here. I actually went to high school here, so it was nice coming back and seeing a lot of my old teachers be coworkers,” Heintzelman said. “But I also just, I really like the environment here, and the students.”
Enjoying what you do for work is really important.
“I like my job better, honestly,” Heintzelman said. “I think this year I’ve got such a good group of kids, I’m really big on relationship-building, and it’s been really easy to build relationships with my students.”
Having a good group of students is essential to having a good year of teaching
“They’re just so nice and accepting, and they’re just really fun to be around,” Heintzelman said. “I’ve got a lot of good dynamics in my classes, and I just really like being around the kids.”
Being involved with the school and students can help you build more and deeper connections with students.
“I sponsor two different clubs, one of them is called Film Club. It’s basically kind of like a book club but with films,” Heintzelman said. “The other club I do, it’s called Joy and Cultures and Communications, and we’re kinda just looking at educating ourselves about different cultures around the world.”
Heintzelman has tried to leave her student with a message to remember.
“Honestly, be kind to others, you never know what other people are going through,” Heintzelman said. “Be empathetic, always consider other people’s feelings.”
Leaving a lasting impact on students is a goal many teachers have.
“So I’ve gotten probably between 12 and 15 really meaningful letters that students have given me,” Heintzelman said. “How much of an impact I’ve had on their life, and how much that I mean to them.”
Teachers all have a different thing that gives them a reason to keep coming back every day.
“I keep all of my letters and everything, and those are honestly my most impactful moments, I would say, just because of the fact that it’s kind of my why, for why I come in,” Heintzelman said.