New Teacher: Paige Culwell

College: I attended Angelo State University and then transferred to Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, where I graduated with a Bachelors of Science in vocational home economics.

What and where do you teach and/or coach?

I teach family and consumer science at both Lovell High School and Lovell Middle School. As the FCS teacher at Lovell High School I teach four levels of foods courses, four levels of child development and four levels of design (fashion and interior). I am also the FCCLA advisor for students interested in this fabulous student leadership organization.

What is your background? Where are you from? What is your professional experience?

This is my 37^th year of working in the education system. I taught 32 years in Texas, and this is my 5^th year in Wyoming. All these years I have been what is now called a family and consumer science teacher. When I graduated from college, it was called vocational home economics. For 27 years, I was also the FCCLA advisor (known as FHA before 1999). My husband and I taught in several school districts through Texas until we settled in Canadian, Texas, in 2006. We taught there for 15 years. When all of our children graduated from high school, we retired and moved to Wyoming to continue our educational journey here. My experiences in Wyoming education include online FCS teacher for the Wyoming Virtual Academy, a paraprofessional and the culinary arts teacher at Powell High School. 

Tell us about your family.

My husband and I have three grown children and one grandson. They all live in Texas. They are the delight of our lives. Our oldest works in the food industry and recently purchased his own home. Our middle child is a sixth grade social studies teacher. Together, he and his wife, who is a nurse, are raising their first child and doing a great job. He is adorable, and I’ve got pictures if you want to see them. Our youngest recently graduated college and is an assistant band director in a small Texas town. We make the most of every opportunity to visit them all when we are in Texas. Since all of our family lives there we see lots of people all at once.  

Why did you get into education as a profession, and what do you like the most about teaching?

I knew from the time that I was a very young child that I was going to be a teacher. I didn’t play with my dolls the way most people did. I lined them all up and taught school.  I don’t think I ever considered any other profession very seriously. I always came back to teaching, and I have loved it!. It’s a wonderful profession to get into when you know you are called to it. 

There are two things I like most about teaching. Honestly, they are the two sides of the same coin. The first is when a student who is struggling to understand a topic or complete a task “gets it.” A light bulb comes on, and I see a transformation that cannot be explained. So many times, it leads to my second favorite thing. That is when a student accomplishes something they never imagined they could. Either way, the students choose to try and their successes have long lasting effects. It is so cool. 

What is your teaching philosophy? How do you get the most out of students and inspire them to learn?

Everyone can learn. Everyone!  When you can find the way that works for them to believe in their efforts to try, they just keep putting out the effort. I have come to realize over the years that I am the single most decisive element in my classroom. It is my personal approach that creates the climate and determines whether or not a student finds a measure of success. It is my job to help them make the most of every opportunity presented … and go find new ones if we don’t find what we are looking for at first.

My goal is to make real world connections with my students. The skills we work on in my class are often those that will help them find success in all areas of life. I get the awesome opportunity to support parents from my classroom as we cover much of the same things they are expected to do at home. But I get to extend that into different areas, where students are hopefully able to see how everything we do connects to life outside the classroom. I want them to be learners. I want them to grow into young adults that challenge themselves to get to the right answer, to try something new and to be their best self. It’s fun.

What are you most looking forward to this school year?

I have enjoyed every season of my teaching career. I think I have learned valuable things that have helped me to be the teacher I am today. To be back in the classroom where I get to teach all topics and work with FCCLA again makes my heart happy. Already, the students on both campuses have been amazing and have made my transition into a new position in an already successful department a great one. The faculty has gone above and beyond to be helpful. It’s been a great start, and I already enjoy it so much.