POTW: Education Edition: Candy Craig, Wellsville Local Schools (Teacher Appreciation Week)

Each year, the #SpanningtheNeed will present an “Inspirational Person of the Week, Education Edition’ during Teacher Appreciation Week and have a “Q & A” with one of its many gifted teachers who are willing to go out of their own way to help others. This week’s featured as apart of our Teacher Appreciation Week is Candy Craig from Wellsville Local Schools. | Nominate someone now.

Name: Candy Craig 
Position:  6th Grade ELA Teacher
School District:  Wellsville Local Schools

What made you want to go into the education field?
I was destined to become a teacher.  My mother was a professional educator for 35 years.  I watched the impact she had on her students and I aspired to follow in her footsteps.

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What’s the biggest factor that has helped you be successful in education?
The biggest factor that has helped me to be successful is my organizational skills.  Organization of my lesson plans, materials, and classroom work areas allows me to maintain efficient time management and make best use of instructional time.  This provides a learning environment that encourages my students to enhance their organizational skills.  An effectively organized classroom culture reduces off-task behavior.

What is the biggest professional mistake you made along the way?
The biggest professional mistake I have made was not maintaining a proper work-life balance.  Teaching is a career that can easily overtake other aspects of your life.  It is important to take time off to avoid burnout.  Both my personal and professional lives improved as I experienced less stress and greater productivity.

What is the best advice you can give future educators or the public?
The best advice I could give to future educators is to be flexible and maintain a sense of humor.  Teachers make an infinite number of important decisions in a day.  One decision will affect another, causing a chain reaction.  Not everything will go according to plan and that is ok.  In education, you learn as much from students as they learn from you.  Having a sense of humor will allow students to see that it is acceptable to make mistakes, have fun, and learn to laugh at yourself and situations.

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If you could start all over again, what would you do differently regarding your profession? 
If I could start over, I would have pursued my degree in education immediately after graduating from high school.  It was challenging to attend college while managing the responsibilities of raising a family.   

What song best describes you or is the soundtrack to your life?
The song that describes me, both in my personal and professional lives, is “See a Victory” by Elevation Worship.  In my personal life, I currently see a victory in my remission from Leukemia.  In my professional life, I see victory when students experience academic, social, emotional, or personal growth.

What is your best accomplishment/experience in life?
My greatest accomplishments in life are being a wife, mother, and grandmother.  The joys I have experienced with my family have given me special memories I will cherish forever.

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Who is your role model and Why?
My mother is my role model because of her many positive character traits.  She modeled  patience, acceptance, endurance, strength, courage, dedication, respect, and love.

If there was one person that you would like to meet, past or present, who would it be and why?
I would like to meet Diana, Princess of Whales.  She was a doting mother and role model to her two sons.  She used her status to bring attention to causes that were important to her, such as the welfare of children, the homeless, and the disabled.

A favorite quote that you live by?
“Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations.”