Mrs. McWhorter has worked at MSMS for three years. She applied and interviewed to work here four years ago, but did not get the job. A year later, she got a call two weeks before school began, and was offered the job. So, she did what any rational person would do; she accepted. She now teaches a total of six classes at MSMS and one online class. This semester, she teaches Calculus 1, Foundations, Trigonometry, and Algebra 1 as the online class. Next semester, she will also be teaching Discrete Math, Calculus 2 and Calculus 3. Her favorite maths are Calculus and Algebra, because of how applicable they can be to real life situations, and said her passion for math stems from when she was younger. She had so many questions about life, but no real way of knowing what the right answer could be, or if there was a right answer at all. Therefore, Mrs. McWhorter said, “I always took comfort in math because there is an answer, and you can know if your answer is right.”
Mrs. McWhorter joined the Air Force right after high school with the goal of becoming a fighter pilot; however, while getting a physical right before her graduation, she discovered she had a collapsed vertebra and therefore could not fly. She did stay active in the force, however, and has been for 18 years. She has done public relations and human relations, and now does admissions for the Air Force academy. She became a lieutenant colonel in September and plans on retiring from the Air Force in two years. Because of this, Mrs. McWhorter said her advice to students would be, “Don’t close any doors. Leave your options open.” She believes that when you stay completely focused on a singular goal, you miss out on any other opportunities that may be open to you; things will happen and goals may change, so it is always best to keep yourself open to new ideas and to not close yourself off from other possible experiences.
Though she originally wanted to be a fighter pilot, Mrs. McWhorter said she loves teaching. She appreciates the fact that at MSMS, teachers seem to teach more than just their designated subjects, “They’re teaching lots of other things, like tenacity… when things get hard, that just means work harder.” She also loves it when she is able to see or help a student reach that “aha!” moment when they might be struggling in class; in fact, she believes that that is one of the most gratifying things about teaching. She takes great pride in knowing that she is helping to shape the minds of the next generation, and that even if her students don’t remember her, they will remember something they learned in her class, whether it’s an obscure formula or how to push through something that may not be giving you the easiest time.
Though she loves teaching here, Mrs. McWhorter is leaving MSMS after this year and moving to Colorado to be closer to her family. Though she will no longer be with us, we shall miss her dearly.
