Jennifer Ryan is a Special Ed Teacher; her job is in helping kids. This is her ninth year working. You’ll be able to find her at the Special Education Office in the main office building.

I got to interview Jennifer Ryan. she was really sweet, nice, and very open.

I asked her why she became a teacher and she said she actually went back to school to get her credential in her 40s since one of her son’s is on the autism spectrum. She worked in his classroom as an instructional assistant for years. She then decided she wanted to get her credentials and become a special education teacher.

I asked her how she felt being a teacher so far:

“I love it , I love it, I’m at the right profession.” said Jennifer Ryan.

I also asked her if she was nervous or excited when she first started working as a teacher.

She said she was very very nervous. She interviewed for a job and she thought she did really well and thought she would get the job but she didn’t. She said she was kind of sad, got interviewed for another job and happened to not get that job either. And then she had another interview for high school but just wasn’t feeling good about it. She went to an interview and as soon as she walked out of the room she started crying because she knew she didn’t do a good job. She felt discouraged since she didn’t get any jobs.

Then they called her three days later and said they had chosen another teacher since she had more experience, BUT it just so happened that two teachers in the autism program happened to leave. Since her interview went pretty well (and she had her son on the autism spectrum program), and knew quite a lot about that, they hired her and she said she was in the right place at the right time.

I asked her what she wished she knew when she first started working as a teacher:

”That it is okay, to not be perfect, and it is okay to make mistakes. ” said Jennifer Ryan.

She was really hard on herself, and she was trying to be good for her two teenage sons. she was trying to be a good mom to them and wanted to go to all their baseball games. She worked every weekend; she was mentally in a bad place. During her time she wished someone would have comforted her, and told her to relax, and that she would have time to become a good teacher later on.

I asked her what’s something she hopes to achieve at her job:

”I think what I hope to achieve is in helping teenagers- helping them if they’re having a hard time or if they’re having stress in their life. When I was a teenager going through school, I was very troubled and very unhappy and even suicidial at one point, and I felt so alone when I was a teenager. So in this job it’s kind of my mission to help teenagers feel a little bit connected, to let them know that someone cares about them. And give them that strength to get through highschool. And maybe they’ll remember that more later. Kind of be the person I wish I had, when I was younger.”

Hearing Jennifer Ryan open up and speak about her teenage years made me feel like I wasn’t alone. It was nice hearing that, especially from a grown adult about what she went through.

Her message was, life is going to suck, you’re going to have those miserable days, but you just gotta get up. And the fear of rejection at interviews is going to happen. And that it’s okay!!

Just on a side note, if you ever feel a bit confused in life (which is where most of us teenagers stand right now), not knowing what you wanna do in life, or what’s next in life, you can talk to Jennifer Ryan. I asked her if she had a message or what she wanted the students to know-

“I would want students to know that, I understand what’s it like to be a teenager. And I understand what’s it like to feel unsure about life and what the future holds. And I would want people to know that if they need anyone to talk to, that I’m someone who listens. And I’m very accepting of everybody no matter what they’re going through.”

Go say hi to Jennifer Ryan! I honestly would recommend her. Like dude, I felt safe around her, not gonna lie. Like I was about to tell her my whole life. She’s honestly a calming person to talk to.