Amanda Kennedy: 'We do have equity of voice'
“I loved her and I knew she loved me. She never told me she loved me, but I knew she was invested in who I was as a person and not just who I was as a student from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in her classroom,” says Amanda. “She really made me feel valued in her classroom and I wanted to make sure I was doing the same for other students, as well, so that is what inspired me to become a teacher.”
Amanda is in her 15th year as an educator and has taught first, third, fourth and fifth grades. She serves as a teacher on special assignment supporting learning acceleration. Her primary focus is on reading and math support in elementary and middle schools.
“I help to oversee the accelerated learning specialists in our elementary and middle schools to do academic support. I also work pretty heavily with literacy and the district’s new literacy initiatives,” Amanda said.
A graduate of Jackson State University, a historically black college and university, and Liberty University, Amanda holds a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in elementary education and a post-graduate advanced degree in elementary leadership. She came to MPUSD in 2017 after teaching in five states due to her husband’s military tours of duty. She is perhaps one of the only teachers in the district that can teach in five states, including Mississippi, Colorado, Kentucky, Florida, and California.
Amanda has served students in different realms and areas and she says her heart is where she grew up; a low income, urban area community of Cleveland, Ohio.
“I have aspirations to make sure I am being a role model and the best teacher possible and supporting teachers to be the best teachers possible for students who grew up like me,” says Amanda.
When asked why teachers need someone in her position to support them, Amanda states, “The needs of a teacher and the to-do list of a teacher can be a long one. We are here to give teachers a little bit of assistance. We want to make sure that all of our students are getting access to grade level content across all grades, but we acknowledge that some students will also need extra support. That is where my team comes in. They support the needs of students and I’m here to support the team in several areas including coaching.”
Amanda’s impact on the system is magnified. The work she does today has an impact on hundreds of students, hundreds of families, and even hundreds of teachers; whereas, in the classroom her work only impacted 25 students and 25 families.
What Amanda likes about working at MPUSD is that the district values diverse perspectives and diverse backgrounds.
“We do have equity of voice. We do believe that your voice has a right to speak and your opinion is valued. I really appreciate that diverse perspectives are respected and uplifted and everyone has a chance to be a leader,” she says. “This is a great community and I just look forward to doing this greater and even better as the years go by.”
When Amanda is not working, she loves to travel and try new recipes in the kitchen.