Five questions for Kandee Almgren at AHS

1. What do you hope to accomplish with your students this year?

I want my students to be able to reflect back on this year and see that they have learned something as well as to realize they have become better people on this earth. I want them to see their accomplishment of becoming better writers and thinkers than they were at the first of the school year. I truly hope my students see these traits in themselves.

2. What made you want to be a teacher?

When I was in school I had some really amazing teachers and some not so great teachers. The great ones made me want to be like them. Others made me want to give my students more of myself as well as a better opportunity to succeed in college and life. I most definitely wanted (and still want) my students to feel better prepared for college, specifically with writing, than I was.

3. What is your favorite time of the school year?

I have several favorite times of the school year. The first week of school allows me to meet my new students, as well as seeing all of the students; I like to see the new seniors transitioning into their new roles in the school. I love the various dress-up days and the creativity students show. Additionally I enjoy the end of the year, but not because it is over. Seeing all that the graduating seniors accomplish in the awards they receive makes me feel proud. Seeing them walk across the stage at graduation just adds to that pride in their accomplishments. I especially love seeing the yearbook come together throughout the year as well as at the very end when we finish the last pages and the school year come to a close.

4. What teacher inspired you?

My second grade teacher Mrs. Joy Sherman, my eighth grade English teacher Mrs. Judi Shirley, my biology teacher and softball coach Mr. Mike Balenti, and my high school counselor Mrs. Karen Koehn inspired me to teach. They provided amazing examples of people who cared about their students and pushed them to excel in school and life. I still strive to be like them.

5. How were things different when you were in high school?

The biggest difference in school since I was in high school is the advancement in technology. We had no cell phones, no laptops, no internet, no Facebook nor Snapchat. We could only use a calculator in math when and if we took trigonometry senior year. We could only use the school's computers, which were nothing like today's, if we were in the computer class, and not many computers were available. I most definitely like the advancement in technology that we can enjoy.