By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Five students nominated the May Hays Post Teacher of the Month for the award, but it was what she offered beyond academics that made the difference to her students.
Kate Ozores, seventh-grade science teacher at Hays Middle School, is only in her second year as a teacher.
Student Avery Arias said of Ozores in her nomination, "Mrs. O is a favorite at our school. She is so kind and is always willing to talk.
"My good friend has some mental health issues, and Mrs. O has been there for her and allows her to come in and talk in the mornings. I have learned so much from her, not only the subject but also how to be a role model and how to treat others."
Student Raylee Brungardt also sang Ozores praises saying, "She is a good teacher, she is always there to help, always kind, and if she can tell something is wrong, she will do something about it. I hope you nominate Mrs. Ozores for best teacher!!!"
Other students followed suit, describing Ozores as bubbly, happy and an amazing teacher.
"She is a great teacher and makes everyone feel welcome. Even on your bad days, she makes it a good day," student Tehlyn Baalman said.
Ozores took the paper on which the students' comments were printed.
"I want to keep this forever," she said.
"Seeing your students say those things, that's what I work so hard for is to make them feel loved and cared for," Ozores said. "I want them to realize I care for them as a person and not just as a student. As a teacher, there is no better feeling."
Ozores, 23, is originally from Junction City and earned a bachelor's degree in education from Fort Hays State University and a master's degree in curriculum design and instructional coaching from Emporia State University.
Ozores comes from a family of educators. Both her mom and dad were teachers. Her mom taught first and second grades, and her dad was a PE teacher.
Ozores said she spent hours in her mom's classroom, writing on her smart board and playing school.
Despite her fantasy of being a teacher like her parents, Ozores struggled in school until she had Brandi Lundgren as a teacher in middle school.
"Growing up through elementary school, I was never the kid that understood things right away. I always needed extra help" Ozores said. "I would say that had a negative impact on me and made me not believe in myself as much.
"I had this math teacher in middle school, and she showed me that I could be successful. She cared about me being successful."
Ozores said from that point on she loved school and knew she wanted to be a teacher. She said seeing her own students' academic success is one of her favorite aspects of being a teacher.
"Also seeing their mental growth and seeing them believe in themselves more throughout the school year," she said.
Ozores likes to use a lot of hands-on learning techniques in her classes.
One of her favorite activities, as well as her students', is an egg car challenge. The students design a vehicle to protect an egg on impact. The activity simulates car accidents and encourages students to wear seat belts, Ozores said. This year, only three eggs did not survive out of 150 students.
"They did an incredible job using scientific principles to design their cars," Ozores said.
She tries to relate scientific principles to aspects of daily life. When her classes discuss inertia, Ozores explains that is why we lean to one side or the other in a car when we go around the roundabouts.
"They love seeing how science applies to the world around them," she said.
Ozores said she believes girls need female role models in science. A female science teacher Ozores had in high school sparked her interest in the field. Growing up she said most of her science teachers were men.
During the school year, she asks her students to draw pictures of scientists. Most students still draw pictures of old white men with crazy hair.
Ozores teaches them about scientists from various backgrounds and races, both men and women.
She said more girls are seeing they too can have STEM careers.
Ozores said her greatest challenge as a teacher is the mental load of caring for her students.
"You want them to be successful. You want them to be cared for and loved," Ozores said. "You realize so many of the students aren't getting those things — the care and the love at home or getting their basic needs met.
"I want them to have that experience that an adult cares for them," she said. "Just knowing that they aren't getting that is heartbreaking. I never had an experience like that, and it's really not fair what these kids are having to go through."
You need to have respect from kids, but they also need to know you have respect for them, Ozores said.
"I can't solve all of their problems, I wish I could, but just listening to them, you feel the weight lift off their shoulders," she said.
Ozores said having her daughter, Avery, last summer inspired her even more to be the best teacher she can be.
"I realized that one day I'm going to be sending my daughter off to school," she said, "and I want to know she is in the hands of a teacher who is going to push her to work hard, help her become successful and just care about her every single day ...
"I just want the parents of my [students] out there to know that I will be that person for their kids," Ozores said. "I will always support them. I will always push them to be their best. I will always be there to care for them and support them in anything they choose to do."
Ozores said she wants to continue teaching middle school science for some time. However, her long-term goals include becoming an instructional coach and eventually teaching education at the college level.