How do you like West Potomac so far?

“I like it, it’s much bigger from the school I came from. The three different buildings were really overwhelming at first but I [found] that I [didn’t] really venture out at first,” said Wilkins, “I also like the kids, they seem really nice and I haven’t had any problems with rowdy kids so far, and that’s always good.”

How have the other teachers been you so far? Any problems?

“I don’t really know that many teachers. I only know the business teachers and some of the other CTE (Career/ Technical Education)  teachers but other than that, I don’t really know. They’ve been really helpful with all the new things I have to do.”

Where did you graduate from?

“ I graduated from Appalachian University”  

Why did you decide to move to Virginia?

“My boyfriend got stationed in the military that’s why I came here.”

How was it like back in North Carolina for college? What did you enjoy most?

“Appalachian is a big football school and I love football. The reason why I went there is because it was originally a teaching college, which then developed into a university, so they have all types of majors now. So it’s one of the number one teaching colleges in North Carolina.”

What made you realize that you wanted to be a teacher?

“My mom was a teacher, so I  kind of  followed in her footsteps. I always wanted to be a teacher when I was younger, but when I got to college I didn’t know what I wanted to be, and that’s why I did business-education, so I have half a business degree and half a teaching degree.”

What drew you to teaching?

“ I guess I just like kids, high school students are more fun, they understand things that are going on around the world, and you can have like real conversations with them, so that’s why I like high school students. Just that age group I guess.”

Why did you choose personal finance/business?

“As a business teacher you can teach a lot of different things and my focus in school was in graphic arts and imaging, so I really like that aspect of the web page, photoshop, illustrator, and those types of things.” “I teach personal finance here because that is what they needed.”

If you could pick any class to teach, what would it be?

“I would teach, like I have a web page class, just like more web page, or just like a multimedia class or something like that.”

Do you enjoy teaching personal finance?

“I mean I think personal finance is very important, I think it’s really cool that Virginia requires it. In North Carolina, they don’t, so it is things you need to know. It’s not like you’re learning something that you’re not going to use in life. You will use all of it.”

Wilkins’s colleague, Mr. Mackie, reflects on what it’s like to work with her.

“Ms.Wilkins has already brought a lot of new energy to our department, She’s very focused and detail oriented. She has already had an influence on me! I’ve even been trying to keep my room clean. She has done a tremendous job adjusting and she is really great with the students”