Grade/subject, school: High School Business, Hamilton Southeastern High School.

Number of years teaching: Seven.

Work e-mail: astumpf @hse.k12.in.us

Background/schooling: Bachelor’s degree in marketing, Missouri State University; master of arts in teaching, University of Indianapolis. Currently in the University of Indianapolis MBA program.

Why did you become a teacher: Growing up, I was like most kids and played school in my bedroom on a daily basis. I’ve always loved school and was ready by mid-July to start the school year every year. I have a family of entrepreneurs, and throughout my high school years I was involved in DECA and took several business classes. There was no cadet teaching or anything to keep me interested in teaching as I began to be in business. I had great success in business and decided to pursue a career in business. I had a very healthy and enjoyable business management career with a Fortune 100 company, but as my husband and I thought about having a family, we both decided to follow our dreams of becoming a teacher. At 31, we both headed back to college, and now we both teach. I feel like I have more to offer my students because of my time in the business world, and I think it was my biggest motivation. I truly had something to offer these kids besides a piece of paper hanging on the wall.

What goals do you have for your students: My number one goal is to create an interest in business for my students; I do that through current events. I prepare more than most teachers because I challenge myself to find current events each day that support our lessons. I remember being in college and having a professor that required we subscribe to and read The Wall Street Journal, this was before the Internet I became hooked on current events in that class! I used to look forward to getting the paper in the mail everyday, as a college sophomore! I want that passion for knowledge for my students. I challenge my students to pay attention to what is going on in the business world right now because they have four or five years before those events directly impact their livelihood. These students will choose majors, some of them before college, and I would hate to think I could have done something with them in high school that would prevent them being misguided in college. I feel horrible when I think of how students spend a year or two in college only to get more into the core classes of a major and find out they do not like it. I want to be the one that helps them make that decision now.

I also want them to be prepared for college business classes and understand what they are about. The students that fill my classroom right now will graduate college to apply for jobs that do not exist right now. It’s futile to think I’m preparing them for those jobs in particular or even the technology that will exist, but I hope I am giving them the tools to use in college to be prepared for those jobs and the world that awaits them.

What do you encourage parents to do at home to help their children strengthen particular skills: Talk to them at dinner every night about finances, their jobs, their management philosophies, the stock market, 401(k) programs, and investments. The parents in our community have resources and jobs that I want my students exposed to. I know my generation was very guarded from their parent’s finances and over the years parents have been encouraged not to “bring work home” but I think that in the right context our students would learn as much from their parents experiences at work and dealing with finances as they would in a classroom.

Name your favorite movie: That is tough. I have so many, but “Pursuit of Happyness” is one that I recently revisited and have on my mind.

Name your favorite musician or band: A little-known ‘90s-era band that is still going strong is my all time favorite. Better Than Ezra. I’ve seen them live 26 times and can’t wait to go again.

What’s something your students might not know about you: Only some of my most dedicated students figure out where I worked when I was in the business world. It’s not something I offer up, students have to have the interest level to ask, and I have turned it into my own social experiment each semester in my classes, how long will it take for someone to inquire. Often it happens very quickly in the year, and other times they may never find out. I find it is becoming less relevant to the kids. I remember my first year of teaching I covered several standards to the very best of my ability and eventually had a guest speaker come in and when the guest speaker said the same things I had said the students seemed so very interested and had so many questions. I went, defeated, to my principal and explained how I used to be that “cool guest speaker,” and he laughed and said “welcome to education. Next to parenting, it is the most rewarding and thankless job you can have.” So true!