Author: Dr. Jenny McCormack Walker, Literacy Texas Executive Director
When I stopped working directly with students and transitioned into my first administrative position, I was surprised to find myself grieving my role as an educator. I spent much of my professional life as a nerdy English teacher who loved her content area, lesson plans, and those little “aha” moments when a student grasped a new concept.
Being a teacher was woven into my identity, and for a while, I considered returning to the classroom. However, one day something wonderful happened; the board of directors for our small literacy CBO challenged me to do outreach and advocacy work.
I needed local community leaders to provide financial support and to partner with our organization on future projects. Maybe it was a bit of imposter syndrome, but I really doubted my ability to be effective. I had never done anything like this before, and the leaders who were attending were mostly powerful men who easily made three times my salary. My stream-of-consciousness thoughts going into that event were overwhelmed with insecurity:
“Did my board know that I personally bought every single chocolate bar I was ever supposed to sell for my kids because I hated asking people for their support? Do they know my stomach is in knots? Do they know that I am not qualified to do this? After all, I’m really just a teacher.”
I learned quickly that being “just a teacher” turned out to be my greatest superpower. As I prepared for the event, I poured my passion for adult learning into my presentation (complete with handouts and take-home assignments). I anticipated the questions they would ask and prepared my responses. During the presentation, I read the room and gauged when to be funny and when to be serious. As I talked about data and shared stories about our adult learners, I saw those familiar “aha” moments on the faces of the suited men in the group of community leaders. They understood the assignment.
That’s when I realized that good outreach and advocacy – at the core – shared the exact components of good teaching. The community had become my classroom. Leaders were my students, and adult literacy was my content. That day, my mindset shifted about outreach and advocacy, and I felt like I had hit the career jackpot. I was not good at marketing, but I was quite good at teaching.
Over the next few years, my passion for outreach and advocacy grew, and although I still have a lot to learn, I have found success. Earlier this year, I was selected to represent Texas on COABE’s State Advocates for Adult Education Fellowship (SAAEF). Through this fellowship, leaders from all over the country work together to help people in positions of power better understand programs like ours. In fact, this month, I will be in Washington D.C. with my SAAEF friends attending an event called Flood the Hill to bring awareness to issues facing adult education.
While I am engaging in outreach and advocacy work, I might wear a pantsuit and sit at fancy tables with fancy people. However, in my mind, I’m back in room 24 sipping coffee from my favorite mug and wearing a cozy cardigan. I’m leading a discussion about a subject I deeply love and doing what I do best: being just a teacher.
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