This past week at our monthly meeting with our IT department, our CTO, Ben Markley, put us all in breakout rooms to share about a person in our lives who has been an encouragement to us. It was challenging for me to think of just one person in my life who has been an encouragement to me. There have been so many encouragers in different seasons of my life for so many different reasons, from family and friends to teachers and mentors, and my husband who encourages me constantly to keep pursuing my career goals. But, on this particular day, I shared the most recent person who came to mind who encouraged me in such a small, but profound way.
One day last fall, I was conducting EdTech site visits to offer support to teachers. I was set up in the staff lounge at this particular school site, and in walks Anne. Anne cheerfully approached me and introduced herself. She told me that she was a teacher at the school and also a board member of our CUE affiliate IACUE. She asked me if I was a member of IACUE and if I'd like to be more involved with the affiliate. Of course I wanted to be involved! Any opportunity to network and support teachers with EdTech is one that I am wholeheartedly interested in being a part of. So, I became a member and started to get involved with IACUE. Anne encouraged me to be a presenter at the IACUE conference earlier this spring, and so I did, and that has led to other opportunities that I was not expecting.
After presenting at the IACUE conference, Anne mentioned that I should consider running to be on the IACUE Board. I thought Me...? Run for the board? Who would even vote for me? I thought about it for half-a second and then dismissed her suggestion as a nice sentiment. But Anne, the encourager, didn't let it go. We ran into each other at the CUE Conference this year in Palm Springs. She said, "So, have you thought about running for the board?" She really was serious. Yes... I had thought about it, and had even mentioned it to my EdTech partner, Terri, and my mentor, Sonal, (who both, by the way, also encouraged me and said, "Oh yeah, you should totally do that!"); but I had quietly determined in my mind that I wasn't worthy of such a role...
But Anne was not having any of that! Anne, was sure that I should throw my name in the hat, and over lunch at CUE, she kept gently encouraging me to go for it. She said things like, "You would be an awesome addition to the board!" and "You would bring such insight and value to our conversations." After lots of questions and listening to her reassure me that I was absolutely fit to serve in this role, I decided to take my chances and throw my name in the hat for a seat on the IACUE Board of Directors.
There were five available seats on the IACUE board, but there were eleven other highly qualified educators running for a seat. When I saw the names of who I was up against, I had already determined in my mind that I lost the election. Some of these folks were current board members up for reelection, edu-celebrities, and book authors with large followings on social media platforms. I thought, Oh there's no way I'll get a seat running against them. Again, that little voice of self-doubt creeped into my head telling me that I wasn't worthy, well-known, or well-respected enough to earn the votes needed for this election. So, I countered that negative voice as best as I could with some positve self-talk: Be proud of yourself, Ashley, for at least stepping out of your comfort zone and throwing your name in the hat. I truly was proud of myself for even trying and made a promise that if I didn't get seat this time, I would still continue to pursue opportunities like this again in the future.
So, as you might imagine, when the election results were announced (election results can be seen HERE), I was sincerely shocked to find out that I had earned a seat on the IACUE Board - I expressed my shock that day via TikTok. Anne texted me to congratulate me and express her excitement and she said, "I cannot wait to make the magic happen!" Me too, Anne...me too! I'm so excited, honored, and humbled to serve on the IACUE board to connect with and support other educators throughout the Inland Empire who are passionate about integrating and innovating with technology to provide high quality learning experiences for students! I'm so glad I listened to Anne's encouragement rather than my own self-doubt. If it wasn't for Anne's encouragement, my self-doubt would've prevented me from even throwing my name in the hat. She had no idea that her words of encouragement would have such a huge impact in my life.
Like Anne, you may have no idea how your words may encourage others in overcoming internal battles that they are fighting. I hope that when you feel compelled, that you follow that voice, and use your words to uplift and encourage others like Anne and so many others in my life have done for me. I hope I have been and will continue to be that encouraging voice to others as well.
Educators - I'd love to hear your stories of how other educators have unknowingly encouraged you in your professional journey like Anne did for me. Feel free to share in the comments or share with me when you see me!
