Teaching helps ‘change the world’: Positive thinking a key to teaching kids the right way

GONZALES – The Gonzales Inquirer salutes Jennifer Lamprecht this week, a fine arts teacher at Gonzales Elementary School, as its hometown hero.

Jennifer’s career path came as an unexpected twist because she didn’t initially plan to become a teacher. But as fate would have it, she eventually found her calling in teaching grades 2, 3 and 4 with some 700 students coming through her class on a weekly basis.

Anyone who knows Jennifer knows she has a unique blend of charm, charisma and humility and that’s what makes her special. And that blend most likely played a huge factor in her winning Gonzales Elementary Teacher of the Year for 2012-13.

“To be quite honest, a teaching career was not a planned destination on my life journey,” Jennifer says. “In fact, I purposefully avoided a teaching career while pursuing an undergraduate degree at Southwest Texas State University. Many people with good intentions cautioned me on entering a field like teaching where pay was not based on merit. As a result of my career choices, I spent many years trying to find a fulfilling profession.”

Jennifer worked in various managerial positions in many industries including hospitals, rehabilitation centers and insurance agencies.

“Although I served in each position successfully, these careers left me longing for a sense of accomplishment,” she says. “With a seemingly child-like innocence, I wanted to change the world and started looking at other employment opportunities.

“I began to examine my previous occupational experiences in an effort to discover the roles and responsibilities I enjoyed most. Surprisingly, after researching several professional fields of work and analyzing my character strengths, I discovered that teaching might be a perfect fit for my personality. I immediately enrolled in an alternative teaching certification program and have never regretted any professional decision since.”

Jennifer says her teaching philosophy is quite simple. It is centered on basic life principles that create character-building habits.

“Presenting these principles with a motivation of love ensures that each student feels valued, respected and accommodated in learning despite their individual differences in abilities, backgrounds, cultures and experiences,” she says. “When students perceive this acceptance, their level of motivation and achievement is enhanced. I strive to maintain a fun, safe and challenging classroom atmosphere where there is a mutual exchange of learning between my students and me.”

Jennifer says her educational goal for each student is not focused on music, art or theatre, although she maintains that fine arts give students a way to unlock a deeper understanding of their education and provide ways to gain the highest level of learning by increasing critical and creative thinking skills.

“My true mission for my students is teaching them how to be successful in my classroom,” she says. “I provide opportunities for them to gain the knowledge and experience needed to create positive habits and learn how to strive for a committed level of excellence in everything they do.”

Jennifer says her students know that their attentiveness, enthusiasm and positive attitude are the only requirements for her class.

“I post a reminder outside my classroom for students to drop any negative attitudes before entering my door,” she says. “It’s important for them to remember that they all have a choice to be either positive or negative in any situation.

“Those choices are made daily. Some of my students struggle with problems they encounter at school or at home,” she says. “I instruct them to focus on the right things, such as who loves them and in all the seemingly insignificant ways they should be thankful.

“By being aware of their attitude and choices, they can protect themselves from external circumstances and other people’s negativity,” she continues. “I explain that every situation encountered in life, good or bad, can be used as a character building opportunity. They must make a choice of becoming a victim or a victor in their circumstance. My students know how they behave conveys a message to the world of who they are and what they expect out of life.

“I challenge each child to begin thinking about what they want out of life and the personal choices that must be made to ensure they achieve their dreams,” Jennifer says. “Maria Robinson once stated, ‘Nobody can go back and start a new beginning but everyone can start today and choose a new ending.’ This quote is seen often in my classroom.”

Jennifer also imparts that from the start, every child knows she has high expectations of them and that it’s their responsibility to rise to meet them.

“I want them to create personal habits that propel them to strive for a level of excellence in everything they do,” she says. “I understand that children must ‘know’ better before they can ‘do’ better. I use a combination of teaching methods and tools to prepare a child for becoming a successful contributor to society by teaching them effective interpersonal skills and seed a desire for lifelong learning.”

Jennifer says she has discovered that being a dedicated teacher takes sacrifice but the sacrifice of time and love has exponential results in the lives of my students.

“Every year I say goodbye to many students that leave my class in an emotional, academically and physically different place than when I first met them,” she says. “As much as it hurts to lose my students, for whatever reason, I know that every single one of my children know that I love them and sincerely care about their futures. Some of the most memorable moments I have experienced in the past three years have profoundly impacted my life.”

Jennifer says those moments have brought both joy and sadness, but all of them have driven her to become a better teacher, the kind of teacher she says children deserve.

“In becoming a better teacher, I have also become a better person, a better mother, a better wife, daughter, sister and aunt,” she says. “I may not be able to change the entire world but I can positively impact the world one child at a time.”

Jennifer’s most recent studies were completed with “IteachTEXAS,” a nationally recognized alternative teaching certification program resulting with my teaching certification of Generalist EC-6 in 2010. From 1997 to 2001, She attended Texas State University, formerly Southwest Texas State University, and graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management. She also attended The Victoria College during the summers of 1997 and 1998.

“I am a proud GHS 1992 graduate,” she says. “I have been employed with Gonzales Independent School District at Gonzales Elementary since 2010 teaching Fine Arts to all second, third and fourth grades I am grateful to work with such an outstanding, supportive and dedicated campus.”

Annually, Jennifer directs three com munity attended musical programs for each grade level she teaches.

“Last year my fourth grade students were honored to perform at the Texas State Capitol for Gonzales County Day activities and for the Wounded Warriors annual field trip that stopped in Gonzales for a luncheon held in their honor,” she says. “I feel a social responsibility to be engaged in my community and participate in many ways to affect my town in a constructive and positive manner.”

Awards and other recognitions include Gonzales Elementary Teacher of the Year 2012-13, GISD Elementary Teacher of the Year 2012-13, SWT Health Information Management Outstanding Student in the State of Texas, SWT College of Health Professions Academic Excellence Award for two years, admittance into SWT Honor Program, SWT Dean’s List for eight semesters, SWT Gaillardian (class favorite) as selected by entire student body, member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Golden Key National Honor Association and Alpha Chi Honor Society.

“I want to thank the entire staff at this campus,” Jennifer says. “If it weren’t for their invaluable cooperation, I wouldn’t be able to do my job.”