Noyce Scholar Profile
Lauren Jones-Sawyer
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: B.S., Mathematics
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Mathematics, grades 9-12
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Noyce Scholar
Name of Noyce institution:
Hampton University
Current academic or teaching status:
Senior
School and school district:
Kids' Castle Child Care Center, Inglewood, CA
Background:
I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California with my mother, father, and younger brother. I have always wanted to teach. My family members share a strong belief in the positive value of a good education. My mother is a 5th grade teacher and my grandmother was also a teacher and school administrator. Upon retirement, my grandmother opened a day care center for children ages 18 months to 5 years old. By volunteering at the center throughout my teenage years, I was able to see the impact that a good foundation in mathematics had on helping to remove the fear of mathematics.
Why do you want to teach:
I want to teach because I want to show children the importance of a good education. In the past, many African Americans were not given the opportunity to be educated. People in my parents’ and grandparents’ generation worked hard to educate themselves. Some of the youth today don’t realize the value of education and are not sensitive to the struggle that many of our ancestors had to endure to obtain an education. The decreasing numbers of college, high school, and even middle school graduates is appalling, and we need dedicated people in the classroom who will motivate the students to pursue higher education. I want to be a secondary school mathematics teacher. I believe I can help teach and mentor young people.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
For three months during the summer I worked as a substitute teacher for a class of two year olds. The daily routine included reviewing the alphabet, numbers, colors, and shapes. It was very interesting to observe the educational progress the students made by the end of the summer. Although the students learned at a different rate, all the students knew the basics by the end of the three months. It was indeed extremely satisfying and rewarding to know that I had been instrumental in helping them to learn this material.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The Noyce Program has meant a lot to me. This program has allowed me to further my education, and I truly appreciate receiving the financial assistance provided to pursue my career goal. I am really thrilled to be able to continue a family tradition of teaching.
