Mrs.Scarberry is a English I teacher here at Heavener for the last four years.
Q: What is one of your hidden talents?
A: Honestly, most of my talents are out in the open. I enjoy painting, woodburning, sketching, writing, and just being crafty in general. However, behind the scenes, I can sing some incredibly off-key shower karaoke, and I have an uncanny ability to collect stray animals.
Q: What makes a good day at school?
A: Honestly, a good day is when the lesson plan flows smoothly on schedule and all of the students turn in their assignments on time.
Q: How do you show your school spirit?
A: I wear my purple and gold proudly. Oh, and I bought two wolves. Literally. They are 8 weeks old and going through some obedience training, I dream of a day with them at a football game howling on command after a touchdown. What can I say? I’m a dreamer. Future mascots maybe?
Q: What is your favorite lunch food?
A: This one is tough. I’m going to go with the mac & cheese with little smokies. I’m a kid at heart. The chicken noodles are pretty great too.
Q: What is the best/worst thing about being a teacher?
A: I’d say the best thing is building relationships with students. Kids in class become “my” kids. I love them and enjoy all of their different personalities.
The worst thing is definitely the days when I’m forced to be a disciplinarian. I wish all my students were little angels every day, but alas, that isn’t very realistic.
Q: What’s a school sport or activity that I enjoy watching?
A: Oh, that is impossible to answer. I’m an extremely competitive person; I enjoy any and all athletic events. Even if it’s underwater basket weaving, I’d be there if I could make it.
Q: If you could take the kids on a school trip anywhere in the world, where would it be?
A: Why all the hard questions? Haha, I’d probably take them on a European tour. London, France, and Italy for sure. Maybe hop on over to Greece if there was time. We’d visit historical landmarks, go on book tours, visit the Louvre, the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, etc. Nothing or no one is a better educator than history itself.
Q: What is your first memory of school?
A: Is this a memory from my school days or a first memory from being here at Heavener?
The first thing I remember as a kid is standing at the foot of the “pirate ship” plaything. There were two girls telling me I couldn’t climb up because only six-year-olds were allowed. I told them I was six. Then in their sneering tone, they told me, “well, only six and a half-year-olds.” Haha, It took some time but eventually I forgave them for being mean, I think it was about 17 years later. Just kidding, kind of.
My first memory here at Heavener doesn’t really involve my employment. My first walk into the school was in the annex building during a tornado warning in May of 2015. My husband and I were just passing through town and got caught in a pretty bad storm. We followed some cars and took shelter in the building. As we sat huddled in a bathroom with strangers, I got a feeling I should ask if they had an opening. So I did. They didn’t have a job opening at the time, but fortunately for me, the stranger I had been speaking with was Diane Duncan. Not so much a stranger anymore. A week or so later, she found me on my social media account to let me know they had a position come open. A few weeks and a job interview later and I my husband and I were making preparations for the move here.
Q: How do you think your students will remember you and your class?
A: It’s hard to tell. I certainly hope they look back on our time together with fondness. I hope they remember the good times, the review games and scavenger hunts. I think they will remember me as being a tad eccentric, always busy, and a little bit crazy when it came to Poe and Shakespeare. No doubt they will remember the classroom that was always cluttered with random stage props and paint splatters.
--Gracie Summers