Educators can have a huge impact on their students' lives, and when they do, it's usually never forgotten. That's what I learned when I asked the BuzzFeed Community, "How did a teacher have a positive impact on your life?"
Many of the responses were incredibly heartwarming, so here are a few that stood out:
1. "My high school German teacher. She was super cool. The class I had before hers had a food party, and I was the only one who brought something that wasn't prepackaged and processed — it was an amazing corn salsa dip, my personal favorite to make at the time. And nobody tried it. She saw how bummed I was and excused me from my next class after hers. She turned on the TV and we sat there watching it while eating the chips and dip."
2. "Math was my worst subject, and I couldn't get it in my head, like, at all. Other teachers didn't care about me failing and would joke, 'See you next year!' It hurt. But my senior year of high school, I had a math teacher who finally didn't make me feel stupid or incapable of learning the subject. I was still in Algebra 2, having hardly passed Algebra 1 with a C+ grade. This teacher saw that I was actually really good at word problems, but when it came to number problems, I was completely lost. So he actually took the time to type out every single word for me — it wouldn't be '4+4', it would be 'four plus four.' Something clicked. Reading the numbers as words worked, and I passed with an A-."
3. "In second grade, I was notorious for being ‘lazy’ and not finishing my work. I had one teacher who was nice enough to realize that I wasn’t just a problem child, I was a child with a problem. It turned out that I had ADHD, and that’s why I couldn’t do my work. She talked to my parents, and I was able to get some medicine. The next year, I ended up having her again. She encouraged me no matter how slow I was, and I'm still extremely grateful, because not all teachers can do that."
4. "When I was in the third grade, I absolutely hated reading. It was always extremely difficult to find something to read that I'd enjoy and actually finish, so doing schoolwork and book reports was a nightmare. My teacher at the time, Ms. Manganelli, knew that I was into creepy legends, so she let us start mini ‘clubs’ during our free time in class to research and read about legends like the Jersey Devil. I started reading that stuff and enjoyed it, so she suggested that I try reading a Goosebumps book. I was immediately hooked. I devoured every single Goosebumps book I could get my hands on. On the last day of third grade, I gave her the first book I had read, Let’s Get Invisible!, and we talked about it when I came back to school after the summer. She had read it, and also left me a little note telling me that she was so glad I discovered my love of reading. She's one of the most important role models I’ve ever had in my life."
5. "My theater teacher in high school came out as queer around the same time I did. My parents weren’t accepting of me, so she became someone I could go to, and not for advice with my queer problems. She encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone and try theatrical things I’d never done before. And now I’m a theater major!"
6. "Before my graduation, I sat down with my homeroom teacher as he did with all the students. He told me that he was very disappointed in me. He said that I had good grades, but I didn't show any enthusiasm, love, or passion for anything I did. It took me a while, but I realized that my homeroom teacher was the first to recognize my high-functioning depression. I wish he knew that he basically saved my life."
7. "My high school band teacher gave his all, despite working for a school with no music budget and a bunch of kids who didn't give a shit about band. He gave anyone who would work for it a chance to develop their talents. He even let me enroll in independent study for music theory once he saw I had a natural talent for it. He gave private lessons, formed extra groups for the kids who wanted it, and did it all with an endless sense of good humor. He also helped kids with their teenage angst. To this day I still consider him to be the most positive male influence in my life, and I'm 27 years old."
8. "I have ADHD and was a severely disorganized kid back in the third grade. I was in track, and one coach bullied me to the point where I almost quit the team. Then Coach Jen stepped in. She took me under her wing, and I stayed. In sixth grade, I needed a running buddy for the 5K marathon. Since we couldn’t find a coach who could match my pace, Coach Jen enlisted her ex-Marine husband to run with me. In the years that followed, I felt like I was almost adopted by her family. I also learned that I was good at distance running. I stuck with it, ended up in the top 10 in my league, and was even captain of my cross-country team in high school. Coach Jen's kindness completely changed my life."
9. "When I was in sophomore year of high school, I grew into a deep depression and struggled with my anxiety. I had no friends, and I would eat lunch by myself in the cafeteria hall. My English teacher saw me and invited me to have lunch with her the whole year."
10. "I had selective mutism in school from kindergarten on. Before I learned how to write, I couldn't even ask teachers to use the restroom and would wet my pants. Eventually I learned to write notes when I wanted to ask the teacher something. Then, in fifth grade, I had a teacher who decided to help me. We worked after school — we started off with me making simple sounds, and she'd reward me with M&M's. We worked for weeks before we planned the first time I'd talk aloud in class. I remember the whole class applauded when I finally spoke."
11. "I went to a low-income public school in my city, and obtaining higher education past high school in my area was not necessarily the norm. I'd always loved reading and writing, but as I got older, my interest started to take a dive because a lot of my peers would make fun of me for always having my nose in a book. I had an English teacher in the seventh grade who nurtured my love of reading and writing. She loved all kinds of literature, spoke multiple languages, and loved classical music. She was unabashedly herself, and she inspired me not to be ashamed of excelling at a subject I enjoyed. By tapping into my love of her class, she also pushed me to do better in my other classes. She challenged me to keep reading, writing, and exploring more literature. Years later, I graduated with two bachelor's degrees in English and history and subsequently went back to school for a master's in social work."
12. "My headteacher during secondary school was amazing. Everyone was afraid of her and thought she was scary, but I saw a different side to her. I was put into foster care during my time there and went completely off the rails. I was taking any drug I could get my hands on, smoking weed at school, verbally abusing teachers, and harming myself. Every day I would get sent to her office, sometimes multiple times in one day. Each time, her level of understanding and support was amazing. She set something up where if I felt like I was going to explode in class, I could leave the classroom and come and speak to her. It worked really well, and while I only used it once, just knowing that was an option was enough."
13. "I was pretty quiet at school. I had friends, but we didn't connect very well. But when I was 16 years old, I had this teacher who was cool, chill, and intelligent. One time after class, I stayed behind to talk with her, and we talked for essentially half of lunch break. We just started to do it more often, and we kind of created this friendship that continued even after I left high school. Basically, if it weren’t for those conversations and the bond we created, I would have continued thinking I was this weird teenager who never fit in at school. She always made me feel okay about my choices and how I lived my life. She was never judgmental. She basically told me to embrace everything and all of me."
14. "I was dealing with anorexia during 11th grade. Mr. Haynes, my English teacher at the time, found out from my friends what my favorite treats were. He always had them in his room for me if I wanted something. He never pressured me, just made me aware that they were there for me at any time. He always wore a suit and seemed stoic, until you were in his class. It was like a closely held secret that no one passed on to other students. His favorite song was 'Love Potion No 9,' and he would sing it to us. He loved the poem 'Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening' and would recite it wearing different hats and with accents. He was just extremely special and died far too young."
15. "When I was 15 years old, I was in a really bad place and had nobody I could confide in. I'd just been rejected by a close friend for being queer. I was trying to come to terms with sexual abuse at the hands of a former teacher, self-harming, and suicidal. Then one day, my history teacher stopped me before class and said, 'You don't have to tell me, but you have to tell someone what is going on in your life now before it gets any worse.' That absolutely broke me. That night was my father's birthday celebration, so I hid in the bathroom during it and sent this teacher a long email about everything that was going on with me. She read it, talked with me, and set up meetings with my counselors to get me school accommodations. She let me stay in her room if I was ever having a really bad day, and she was always there for me if I needed to talk about anything."
16. "I got C grades every year in my math classes, and it was a struggle to even get those! Then, in my junior year of high school, I finally had a teacher who made math interesting. Ms. Mienke would teach something, ask us if we understood, and if anyone still had a 'huh' look on their face (me), she'd teach us a different method. I was finally earning a B grade when my dad suddenly died the weekend before finals. He worked at my high school, so all the teachers knew. For some reason, I was determined to take my finals, and I did. That math teacher told me later that she never even graded my test. She gave me the B I'd worked hard for up to that point. She said it wasn't fair to grade someone who was going through the worst moments of their life. Other teachers were not so kind."
17. "My fifth-grade writing teacher was the first person to ever tell me I was good at writing. She coached me on her own time for several writing competitions. I got first place in one of them, and honorable mention another time. She was incredible at recognizing what I needed to be challenged in class, and gave me time to work on a story in class when she saw I needed more to keep me engaged. Her advice meant the world to me. I’ve since joined a website for writers like me, and I still enter writing competitions!"
18. "I had a rough home life growing up, and it only got worse in high school. My senior year was the worst — I was constantly missing school to work, and for most of that year, I was homeless. By the middle of the year, I'd made the decision to drop out, and I called to let the school know my intentions. My principal said he understood but asked that I come to talk to him face-to-face first. I did. He told me that there was the option for my remaining required classes to be completed online. I still had two issues, though: my attendance, and the fact that I couldn't afford the online classes. So my principal paid for my online classes himself and for my attendance recovery. I did my online classes and hoped it was enough to be able to graduate. When I found out I'd passed my finals and would be able to graduate, my principal and I cried happy tears together."
The National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline is 1-888-950-6264 (NAMI) and provides information and referral services; GoodTherapy.org is an association of mental health professionals from more than 25 countries who support efforts to reduce harm in therapy.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org. The Trevor Project, which provides help and suicide-prevention resources for LGBTQ youth, is 1-866-488-7386.