As an undergraduate at NLU, I told myself that I never wanted to teach higher than 4th grade. Then I took the middle school endorsement classes and realized middle school is where I was destined to teach. After graduating with my bachelor's, I was hired in a middle school to teach 6th grade.

When I decided to pursue a master’s degree, I really did not know what program I was interested in. So I went to an Open House at NLU and Nancy Naughten was there introducing a new program for Middle Level Education. A huge sense of relief was lifted off my shoulders because I knew immediately that this was the master’s program for me!

I thought that I knew what it meant to be a middle school student and a teacher of middle school students. After all, I did take the endorsement classes, how much more could there be? Well, over the next 18 months, I found out that there is a lot to know about middle school students! We took classes that exposed us to media and pop culture influences, gender and cultural equity, we explored how to connect families and the community to middle schools, and how advisory teachers are advocates for middle school students. One of my favorite classes was the Integrative Arts class. We were in the Chicago campus and went on field trips and had guest speakers to discover all the outlets of art that can be used in the curriculum.

My master’s degree has allowed me to grow professionally in more ways than I imagined. I am much more aware of the influences in the media, culture and community that are in my students’ worlds. I have made more of an effort to involve families and the community in the curriculum. And most importantly, I am even more of an advocate for my students and realize how important this is as a middle school teacher. My master’s degree expanded my knowledge on how to reach my students through the curriculum and beyond.

Nicole Scott

6th Grade Teacher at Holmes Middle School in Wheeling, IL

NLU Middle Level Adjunct Instructor