Joshua Powers, a native of Sikeston, Mo., is majoring in secondary education and graduated from Sikeston Senior High school in 2005. Joshua has had the opportunity to attend both the Sikeston and Cape Girardeau campuses of Southeast.
As a Southeast sophomore, Joshua plans for his academic career are well thought out. Having declared a major in secondary education, Joshua recently declared a major in mathematics and plans on minoring in chemistry and possibly physics. He eventually plans to pursue a master’s degree and says, “Southeast will be my first choice.”
Joshua says, “it’s hard to say what motivated me to go into teaching. Part of it is the three biggest assets of teaching; June, July and August. I do love the summers off. Also, I love being social and being the center of a crowd even if it is just high school students.”
More specifically, Joshua says, “The reason I chose math and science is because of the challenge. I have always excelled in these subjects, but it has been a challenge. I believe that with my high abilities in these subjects I will be able to explain it to students and hopefully encourage them to excel as well.”
Although Joshua has yet to student teach, he has had the opportunity to tutor and assist with study sessions.
“What I enjoy most about teaching is that I get to help other people find out what they don’t know,” he said. “I always enjoy the look they have when they say, ‘oh, that’s how you do it!’”
Joshua says, “It’s tough to pinpoint one favorite moment at Southeast. I like to think that yesterday was the second best day I’ve had; today is the best; but, tomorrow will be better. I always look to enjoy everyday I have, so everyday is another favorite moment.”
Joshua says he feels his experiences in class have helped him to “learn subjects in new ways that have ultimately made me choose to become a teacher.”
Joshua says he enjoys classes that challenge him because he feels he is learning something new.
“These classes teach me to work hard to understand new information, which will shape me as a person.”
As for what he does outside of the classroom, the list of outdoor activities is endless.
Joshua says, “I enjoy hunting, camping, playing basketball and going to the lake. I would say when I go to the lake, I have the best time. I love to just hang out with the guys and be on the water. You can swim, ride jet skis, dive off of cliffs and ride inner tubes.
“Kentucky Lake is my favorite travel destination because it’s close enough to home that you don’t feel like a tourist, and it’s a blast,” he said.
“I want to teach near Kentucky Lake. I love the water and the scenery can be breathtaking.” says Joshua.
When thinking of future travels, Joshua says, “I would like to go to Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and perhaps the Dominican Republic.”
Another outdoor activity that Joshua loves is four-wheeling.
“My favorite thing to do to have fun is to ride four-wheelers with friends. Usually the only things clean when we come back are our eyes and teeth, and most of the time; we come back wearing about 15 pounds of mud.”
In addition to his classes and love of the outdoors, Joshua enjoys volunteering for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA).
“I enjoy working with the MDA because it is an accredited organization that has helped thousands of individuals since its existence.”
Joshua was able to participate in an MDA event in the Sikeston area that required him to spend some time as a ‘jailbird.’
“The ‘jailbirds’ were asked to raise ‘bail’ money in order get released. The money will be used by the MDA for a multitude of purposes. I just wanted to do what I could to help out those less fortunate than myself,” says Joshua. .
Joshua describes himself as “free and easy going.” His laid-back personality is why he says he “loves to smile, laugh and talk to everyone. I love to joke with anyone just to see the smile and have a good time.”
When thinking of his ultimate dream job in 20 years, Joshua says, “In 20 years I’ll be 40 years old and at that point I believe it would be great if I could be the head of the math and/or science department at a school. I want to be the teacher that every student wants to take, not because of ease but because of the amount of knowledge they could gain by taking my class. I remember a calculus teacher that retired before my senior year of high school and a group of students went to her classroom and begged her to stay just one more year to teach us. That’s my dream job.”
Joshua’s advice for future Southeast students is to “do your best in whatever you do. When you do your best in anything, you won’t limit yourself with excuses and regrets.”