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 EDITOR’S NOTE: The LaGrange Daily News is doing a Q&A with all of the teachers of the year in the Troup County School System. Today, we are writing about Taveta Caldwell-Debrow, a first-grade teacher at Berta Weathersbee Elementary. We asked her 20 questions, and we shortened this interview to some of our favorite responses.

Taveta Caldwell-Debrow has been teaching for 30 years. The first 26 years were in Alabama. The past 4 years have been with Berta Weathersbee Elementary and the Troup County School System.

Taveta has two daughters. The oldest is a nurse at an Ear, Nose and Throat clinic at the Children’s Hospital of Birmingham 

When not in the classroom, she gets involved with activities at her church, Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Opelika, Alabama.

What inspired you to become an educator? (Or who?) 

“I became inspired to be an educator during my senior year in high school. I worked at our elementary school in the morning as an office aide.  I would often also help the teachers in their classrooms and prepare things for them such as making copies, laminating, etc.  I really enjoyed being around the faculty and staff. Hearing the stories about many of the students was heartwarming and sometimes heartbreaking.  The struggles and triumphs the teachers and students went through to achieve their goals were very inspiring.  I actually did not decide to become an educator until I did volunteer work my sophomore year at Auburn University.  I was a mentor to kids at Cary Woods Elementary in Auburn, Alabama and the counselor Mr. Echols was over the program and encouraged me to be a teacher.”

What are your career aspirations? 

“At this point, I am working on my second retirement.  My aspirations involve making sure I can reach as many kids as possible and help them achieve their maximum potential.”

If you weren’t a teacher, what career field would you be in? 

“I would have majored in public relations and worked for a public institution such as a university, hospital or school system.”

What hidden talent do you have that might surprise your students and our readers?  

“I write poetry.”

What’s the most creative/unique project one of your classes has worked on?

“We had a pet fish and it passed away.  One of the students asked were we going to have a funeral so we planned one.  We decorated a box for the fish.  Picked out a place in the courtyard to bury him.  Decorated a rock for his tombstone. Wrote an obituary. We conducted it like a funeral.  After the funeral, we came back into the room and happily continued with our day. We did a great lesson with that experience!  My former students mention it whenever they see me.”

If you could invite any historical figure to speak to your class, who would you choose and why?

“Malia and Sasha Obama because they could discuss and talk about what it was like living in the White House.  They could also discuss what it was like to have famous parents and how they were just normal kids growing up.”

What’s the most rewarding part about your job? 

“The most rewarding is when a parent and student thank you for helping them grow and progress. When they can tell you specific things you did to help them and what has improved with the child, it is very gratifying.”

What’s the most challenging part of your job? 

“The most challenging is dealing with so many different needs.  The academic levels and behavior levels are much broader than they have been in the past.”

What’s the most unusual excuse a student has given you for not completing their homework? 

“The most unusual was that the baby sister ate the homework.”

What did it mean to you to be named your school’s teacher of the year? 

“I felt very humbled and appreciated.  It feels good to know that others recognize your hard work and dedication.”

On a weekend or a summer day when school is out, what are your favorite activities? 

“I love traveling, shopping and streaming movies.”

As your students transition to the next grade or graduate in May, what is one key takeaway you hope they carry forward from their time in your class? 

“I hope they realize how important it is to have a good work ethic and treat people the way you want to be treated. Those two things will take you very far in life even if you are not the smartest or the richest.”