Experiences- Melissa Rife

Growing up I was often around other boys and girls with special needs. My Aunt and Uncle were and still are foster parents to multiple children with special needs.  When I was at family gatherings they were there as well and I called them my cousins even though I knew they weren’t really related to me.  These were just some small experiences that I had as a child.

 My first full-time job was at Monroe BOCES 1. I worked as a Para-professional at Creekside School. I remember the first day like it was yesterday. I walked in and this boy welcomed me into the room with a hug and said, “Come sit with me”. I thought that was great and I knew right there that I had found my passion for kids and teaching. From that point on I continued to grow and work with students with special needs.

When I attended college as an undergraduate, I started at MCC. I chose to go to Damon Campus downtown because I wanted the city experience. I wanted to learn and become a part of a cultural of diversity that I didn’t really know much about. In the two years at Damon campus I learned so much about different cultures, backgrounds, and childhood experiences that were much different then mine.  By submerging into all these diverse cultures, I realized my next phase in life: to teach in an urban setting.

After attending MCC, I finished my undergrad at Geneseo. I couldn’t wait to finish with class and start getting real life experience. I remember speaking with my advisor just before student teaching and sayings “please, place me in an urban setting”. I knew deep down that influencing students of all cultures and backgrounds was where I needed to be. As I reflect back my all my decisions lead me to where I am today. Correction: not so much my decisions but my attitude and openness towards those decisions.

As I continue to evolve as a person so will my feelings about diversity and how our many cultures influence it. There are so many mainstreams to pull us in and allow someone else to think our thoughts for us. My hope is I can help boys and girls to learn the important tools needed to think for themselves and see our world as ever evolving as one human race. Currently, I work in a Charter school where over 90% of the student population has free or reduced meals. The majority of our students are African American, Hispanic, and then Caucasian. I believe that all the little influences through out my life have lead to this directness of cultural diversity and loving every aspect of it.