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The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Janice Givens
Teacher of the Month
By Crystal Patriarche
Givens shows determination in all she does – from her determination to become a mother to bringing out the best in her students. She finds it very difficult to give up on a student. She wants them to succeed and will do anything she can to help make it happen.
"I believe that all people have something great inside of them," she says. "My job is to help them bring it to light. I see my accomplishments as a teacher in my students' successes. When I help a student prepare for our Alabama High School Exit Exam, which is required to graduate, and they pass, that is when I feel my greatest accomplishment."
And this is evident to her students. "My favorite part of Mrs. Givens' journalism class is the way she will do anything to help a student out," says Ashley Kilcrease, who has been Givens' student for two years. "She is constantly assisting students with their newspaper stories or helping them with their yearbook spreads. She will go the extra mile to help any student."
Kilcrease says that Givens also puts in a lot of her own time toward the school's yearbook and newspaper to make sure they are the best the student staff members can produce. "Even though she has two small children, which are the joys of her life, she still takes time out of her afternoons and weekends to do things for the staff," she says.
According to Kilcrease, Givens is very encouraging and a great mentor. She is always willing to talk to her students when they seem like they've had a stressful day or when they just look a little down. "There are lots of seniors in our journalism class and she is always very encouraging when it comes to college," she says. "She has encouraged a very good friend of mine that she can go to college even though she will have to get a student loan and work to pay for it all by herself. Mrs. Givens always tries to give students hope, even when things look rough."
