 "Photo: Samantha Shockley")
Math. The Very word strikes fear in the hearts of students everywhere. The thought of fractions have the power to cause nightmares. Many students dread having to take the class, and wonder why anyone would want to teach the fearful subject.
Neesha Patel has been teaching at Green River for nine years. Teaching math. Her outlook on math is completely different from many, "It's not just about teaching math," she explains, "it's about removing these barriers of fear that are associated with the subject." Her bright opinion about math is what makes her such a strong and compassionate individual, "Math isn't black and white, it's not right or wrong, there are all these gray areas to how you can approach it."
Prior to teaching Patel was a systems analyst and a math tutor at Renton Technical College, Highline community College and in the Kent School District. The steps that led her to teaching aren't at all typical. She recalls that her life was going in a completely different direction when she recognized all these incidental steps that kept pointing her towards teaching.
While working at Renton Tech Patel realized her love for teaching. She felt that the seed of teaching was planted in her after she had been tutoring a student who had failed the GED test many times. She remembers the day as if it was yesterday, "I walked into the room and he came up to me with a big grin on his face, he had his arm outstretched to shake my hand and he told me he had passed his GED."
Every day in Patel's classroom students' opinions about math can be changed, their eyes opened to the bigger picture through her dedication and passion for teaching. "There are times when you really are able to transform a student, and that is why I love teaching," Neesha Patel explains.
When asked about her experience at GRCC Patel said sincerely, "Students at Green River aren't typical students. They're going to school a lot of them full time. They work, sometimes some of them work two jobs, they have small kids and they are juggling all these things around but yet they are so motivated. It's just lovely teaching students like that."
The concept of juggling life also applies to Neesha Patel. In the spring Patel will graduate from the University of Washington with her masters in teaching. She remarked that in the last four years she really decided that she loved what she did, and she wanted to make that commitment.
To go from being a systems analyst to becoming a teacher is very unique. Neesha Patel is an example for everyone, find out what your passion is and run with it.
is a member of the 
Be the first to comment on this article!