Dr. Kayla Hester has always enjoyed learning about history. Stepping into the mindset of someone from the past is like “travelling back in time” for her. She says, “Exploring what culture and society was like in a different time tells us so much about how we got to where we are and impacts our present lives.”

Dr. Hester is originally from Nettleton, Mississippi. She received her bachelor’s and graduate degrees in history from Mississippi State University. Hester first became interested in education in college where she met history professors who “inspired” her. She says, “I really enjoyed being in an institute of higher learning, and I wanted to be in the environment for as long as I could.” After working as a graduate teaching assistant for six years, she realized her desire to spread the knowledge of history and applied for a job opening at MSMS while still pursuing her Ph.D.

Hester first heard of MSMS as a high school student, but she truly learned more about the school when she applied to be a teacher. She says, “I looked at the school’s mission and realized that it was ideal for me because I could focus on interacting with the students.”

Dr. Hester teaches U.S. History, Government,  and Economics. Beginning this year her Economics course will have a focus on entrepreneurship as well. She is also very involved in student and extracurricular life. As the coordinator for the well-known Mentorship program at MSMS, she matches students with a job or career path they are interested in for a semester-long experience. She also sponsors the Forgotten Stories Club, Future Business Leaders of America, and Wags and Whiskers.

“The students are what I love most about MSMS,” she says. “They have a desire to learn, and it’s nice to teach students who know that education matters.”

Hester has a number of ideas for future courses at MSMS. After writing her dissertation on the Cold War and U.S.-Soviet cultural exchange, she hopes to start teaching a Russian History class. She would also like to teach her U.S. History class with an oral component. “I’d like students to do a project where they conduct interviews with people in their community to find out what life was like two to four decades ago,” she says.

Outside of the classroom, Dr. Hester enjoys gardening, spending time with her family (she has an eight-month old baby) and taking care of dogs. She is passionate about politics and college football, and her favorite color is teal. One of her favorite presidents is Dwight Eisenhower, as he was “thoughtful and knew that military might was not the only way to fight in war.”

Her advice to students is to “pursue something you are passionate about” and to “always assume that there is more to learn” in life. As a first-generation college student who now has her Ph.D., she wants others to know that with willpower, advancing your education “is definitely doable.”