Kaysha Young-Brown determined in quest to become a teacher
MLK Elementary teacher finalist for Dougherty County School System Teacher of the Year
Kaysha Young-Brown
By Terry Lewis
ALBANY — Despite setbacks along the way, Live Oak Elementary School teacher Kaysha Young-Brown said she always knew she would be a teacher and would not let anything prevent her from reaching that goal.
“The obstacles I faced would not deter my lifelong dream,” Brown, one of eight finalists for the Dougherty County School System’s 2016-17 Teacher of the Year, said. “I grew up not knowing my biological father, and my mother and step-father separated when I was around 9. When they separated, circumstances sent us to live in the housing projects, and my mother had to raise four girls on her own.
“We didn’t have a car, nor did my mother know how to drive. We would walk for miles just to get to the doctor.”
Brown said she tries to teach the lessons of her youth to her students.
“I knew my lifelong dream of becoming a teacher had to become a reality because I needed to tell students they could become anything they wanted to be,” she said. “I want all children to know that their destiny is not pre-ordained by who or where they came from. It’s in their hands.
“Touching the lives of children is the most enriching and gratifying job anyone can do in life.”
Two of Brown’s sisters also became teachers.
“My oldest sister became a teacher first, and I would go to her school to volunteer,” the MLK Elementary educator said. “I observed her in the class and wanted her to move over and let me do the teaching”
Brown says she focuses much of her classroom effort on student achievement.
“Some of my greatest contributions or accomplishments center around academic achievement,” she said. “I hope my students and I continue to perform well on standardized tests. My dedication to the Dougherty County School System is a contribution I wouldn’t change for anything.”
Brown has taught in the Dougherty County School System since 2000 and has been at MLK Elementary for the past 10 years. She teaches reading, math, language and social studies.
She holds BA and MA degrees in early childhood education from Albany State University; a doctorate in education leadership from Nova Southeastern University and a specialists degree in early childhood education from Georgia Southwestern State University.
Dougherty County’s 2016-17 Teacher of the Year will be announced at a banquet Thursday evening at the Hilton Garden Inn.
Related Articles
Dougherty Schools prepare for bell-to-bell student cell phone ban
As Georgia prepares to expand its statewide ban on personal electronic devices in public schools, Dougherty County School System leaders say they are working to balance compliance with the new law while giving individual schools flexibility in how they implement the policy.
Georgia’s school funding formula still ignores poverty; educators say students pay the price
During a report to the board on the outcomes of this year’s legislative session, Dyer discussed the district’s efforts to persuade lawmakers to add an “opportunity weight” to Georgia’s Quality Basic Education (QBE) funding formula — a change supporters say would provide additional state funding for students living in poverty.
Albany teen, 16, makes bodybuilding debut at Atlanta OCB Pro/Am
Crockett, an Albany resident and student at Albany Technical College Academy, placed second in the teen bikini division this weekend at the OCB Immortal Muscle Pro/Am Bodybuilding Competition in Atlanta, becoming the youngest competitor across all categories at the event.
