Congratulations, Mrs. Donovan

A bit of context:

At the end of sophomore year, I heard several things about Mrs. Donovan from last year's juniors, among them were warnings like, "Five kids got an A in her class last semester," or "She assigns so many projects and grades them all really hard," and "We wrote six in-class essays within the past two weeks and my hand is officially dead."

In fact, a friend of mine gave a single line of input: "Hardest. Class. Ever."

Long story short, I sat-in on two English classes a day for a week and added an additional period to my 6-period schedule in an attempt to get into her class.

Let me just say, it was beyond worth the time and effort.

Yes, there were many projects, yes we did write six in-class essays within the course of two weeks, and yes my grade was struggling to escape the dreaded label of "borderline," but in receiving her critique, we as a class were able to see tangible results. The change in mindset from "impossible" to "plausible." My transition from having difficulty in self-expression to gaining confidence in group discussion. What once appeared daunting now feels more than manageable, thanks to the exposure and encouragement fostered by Mrs. Donovan's teaching style.

She is the kind of person who brings her class cookies on a special occasion. She is the kind to gently scorn yet laugh to herself as she happens to overhear some of the overly passionate (and often colorful) conversations around the classroom (on current issues from teacher gossip to vents about the president). She is the kind of teacher who–even when she hits you with a horrifying grade or calls you out for sleeping in class–retains utmost respect from her students.

Thank you, Mrs. Donovan, for your investment in us as students and the time and effort you put into helping us improve as analysts and writers. Congratulations on your retirement! We could not be happier for you.