Prologue
My name is Megan Lindsay. I grew up and lived the first 18 years of my life in Arnold, MO. After high school, I decided I was done with Missouri for a while, so I made the move to Oxford, Mississippi to attend the University of Mississippi. While there, I changed my major a whopping five times! I enjoyed learning about many subjects, so I had difficulties settling on one thing.
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In my sophomore year college, I made the decision to completely switch tracks. At the time, I was finishing up the second year of a chemistry degree (previously a double major with biology, then a double major with psychology, and finally a single major) when I thought English Literature might be a better fit after all.
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Why MTC?
"I don’t know what to write!" This was the most common excuse I heard from my students when they had written a paragraph in response to a one-page journal assignment. When I insisted they write more anyway, my students would get impatient and huffy because "Ms. Lindsay just doesn't understand." But I am no stranger to writer’s block. I have always been the type of writer that waits for inspiration before writing, which means I could go months without writing a single word.
I had a similar inspiration problem at the start of my second year in the Mississippi Teacher Corps. I had started thinking about the theme of my portfolio early because I had no idea what I wanted to showcase or how I wanted to tie everything together. I definitely wasn't feeling creative. I struggled to create engaging lessons on a daily basis, so how was I supposed to design a website that fit the guidelines of the project but also make it unique? Many writing themes had already been done: the writing process, chapter headings like in a book, quotes from famous authors. Then, I had an idea! I am a writer, I thought, so why not write an actual book? I had plenty of stories to tell from teaching.
Although I loved the idea immediately, I quickly realized the incredible amount of work such a portfolio would take. I hadn't written creatively during my time as a teacher for many reasons: I was tired, I had an endless to-do list for my job, I was in graduate school, and I was too busy to feel inspired. But I couldn't come up with a theme I liked better. This theme was the one I wanted, so I started writing down my vignettes of teaching even when I had difficulty remembering specific details or the words didn't flow easily. Because anything worth doing will have it's challenges along the way. I think that's what my students failed to understand about writing. Sometimes, you just have to force yourself to write: to work through the kinks of un-imaginativeness, to combat apathy, to give a task a decent effort and hope for the best.
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Before MTC
With a creative writing emphasis, I figured I would eventually pursue a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. But when after-college life became a more pressing issue, I chickened out on that plan. I wasn’t sure if my writing was good enough to get me into any graduate programs, so I decided the more responsible route would be to find a job first. I am not a risk taker, I thought, so the MFA can wait.
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One problem: I truly didn’t know what I wanted to do after college. I tried to visit the career center at Ole Miss, but felt overwhelmed by everything: deciding where I wanted to live, choosing the types of jobs I could apply for, developing a LinkedIn profile, connecting with possible employers, and thinking about future job interviews. Then, I heard about the Mississippi Teacher Corps through the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College newsletter. I went to an informational lunch hosted by the honors college, met Dr. Mullins, and heard about the Mississippi Teacher Corps from the man who helped create it. After which, I called my mom to discuss in detail what I learned (while she was at work – you’re the best, Mom!)
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MTC became my future job plan because it just seemed so easy. I had to fill out one application and my school placement would be decided for me. That definitely seemed less daunting than applying to numerous office jobs or somehow marketing myself as a good potential employee despite my lack of experience and business degree. I would also have a job straight out of college. I would earn a Masters degree for free. I would get a Macbook Pro. I would be helping a school district that desperately needed teachers. My job would be more meaningful than any office job. And if teaching wasn’t for me, MTC was only a two-year commitment.
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So I applied to MTC in the fall of my senior year with no true back up plan, crossed my fingers, and set out an admittedly risky, yet worthwhile adventure.
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I loved to read and writing essays wasn’t the worst thing ever. My main motivation for switching was creative writing. I spent a lot of time daydreaming and I had been trying to write novels since I was in elementary school. Creative writing was a true interest of mine and I wanted to pursue writing my own stories. Under the guidance of great teachers like Tom Franklin, Beth Spencer, Beth Ann Fennelly, Melissa Ginsburg and so many others, I enjoyed my time as an English major, immersed in both reading and writing. I even had the opportunity to take a couple creative writing classes abroad!
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Where I Teach
For the past two years, I have worked at the H.W. Byers Attendance Center, which is a school campus affiliated with the Marshall County School District. My first year of teaching, I worked in the high school, teaching English III, English IV, Creative Writing, and Mississippi Writers. I moved down to the middle school for my second year, where I taught 8th Grade English-Language Arts and Compensatory Writing. (For more information on the school district, you can click the Marshall County School District logo at the bottom of the page.)
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