When Megan Guidry stepped back into Mrs. Garrison’s fifth grade class at East Coldenham Elementary School in Montgomery, NY in 2024, it was as if she stepped into a time machine. The memories flooded in: Mrs. Garrison warmly greeting her with a smile at the door each morning, carefully crafting narratives in her writer’s notebook, and declaring her dreams of becoming a teacher on a poster for her moving up ceremony.
Megan stood in front of the desks she once sat at as a wide-eyed fifth grader, dreaming of the day she would become a teacher. Her former teacher and mentor Mrs. Garrison introduced her to the class as their new student teacher.
Despite still being a senior in college at the time, Megan seamlessly blended into the classroom as if she’d been teaching for years. Not only was she already familiar with the classroom and school building, but she was able to connect with the students by sharing her own experiences as a student in Mrs. Garrison’s class.
“I brought in narratives I’d written in my writer’s notebook from when I was in Mrs. Garrison’s class to show them. I also brought in pictures with friends in the fifth grade on the playground and they knew the exact spot I was standing in,” says Megan.
“Many times as she’s teaching she can refer back to times as a student to relate to what they are going through. It absolutely helps the students to make a connection with her,” describes Mrs. Garrison.
It was no surprise to Mrs. Garrison at all that Megan would one day become a teacher.
“In the fifth grade, Megan always showed me in class that she was here to learn. She was like a sponge. She was responsible, organized, and exactly what a teacher dreams about having as a student,” says Mrs. Garrison.
Not only did Mrs. Garrison see Megan’s potential and proclivity towards becoming a teacher as a ten-year-old, but she also played a much larger role in helping to shape Megan’s future.
When Megan was a senior in high school, she asked Mrs. Garrison to be a reference for a college scholarship. It was then, the two had a long conversation about college and Megan’s plans, and both agreed that Megan would do her student teaching in Mrs Garrison’s class when the time came for her to complete the requirement for her degree.
Under normal circumstances, Megan would have been placed in a district closer to her college, SUNY Fredonia, to do her student teaching, but she asked her college to let her student teach at Valley Central School District. Megan’s college reached out to Mrs. Garrison, then to Dan McDonald, principal of East Coldenham Elementary School, as well as the Valley Central School District’s administrative office to verify her student teaching appointment.
“I want to create the same experience for children that Mrs. Garrison created for me,” Megan said. “She creates connections with her students before they even enter her classroom. She’s very friendly, saying hello in the hallways. You feel like you know her before you ever set foot in her classroom. I also want to give back to the place that raised me. I feel very lucky to have had such an amazing student teaching experience. I can thank Mrs. Garrison and my students for that,” Megan describes.
Mrs Garrison beams as she describes her protegee: “I feel guilty because she’s so incredible. It was like having another full teacher in my classroom. She jumped right in from moment one. She’s a natural.”
After graduating from SUNY Fredonia in the Spring of 2025, Megan became a long-term substitute teacher at her alma mater Valley Central School District, teaching fourth grade at Montgomery Elementary School. She’s also currently working on her master’s degree in literacy through SUNY Fredonia.
Perhaps one day, years from now, Megan will stand in front of her own classroom, introducing one of her former students to her class as their new student teacher. Perhaps Megan’s classroom will be adjacent to Mrs. Garrison’s at East Coldenham Elementary. Just like a circle, which has no beginning and no end, there’s no telling just how big of an impact a good teacher can make.
Megan Guidry’s story is a familiar one at Valley Central School District, where approximately 32% of their staff are alumni, 17% of which are currently employed as teachers, substitute teachers, or principals. Superintendent Evette Avila estimates this figure will continue to grow.
“We pride ourselves on building a culture of community belonging. In fact, it’s one of our strategic plan priorities,” says Superintendent Avila. “Seeing graduates like Megan Guidry make their way back to their alma mater as staff members tells me that we’re on the right track.”