Welcome to the fifth Teacher Feature of the 2024-2025 school year! I am delighted to feature Ms. Conard, one of our Spanish teachers. This is her first school year teaching at Richwoods. Ms. Conard is a very caring, diligent, and enthusiastic teacher, and we are honored to feature her on the Shield and be able to learn facts about her that even her former students didn’t know!

The Shield: “Before teaching at Richwoods, you taught at Reservoir Gifted. So far, what have been the most notable changes for you between teaching middle school and high school?”

Ms. Conard: “I have noticed that class periods are longer, which is nice. I also like being able to treat my students more like adults. It is also a lot bigger with more names to remember at Richwoods. I haven’t taught Spanish I material in many years.”

The Shield: “Where did you go to college, and what was it like?”

Ms. Conard: “I completed most of my undergraduate degree at WIU, Western Illinois University, and my experiences there were relatively normal. I got my master’s degree online from Nova Southeastern University in Florida. After my master’s degree, I also took classes for bilingual and ESL certification.”

The Shield: “What is your best piece of advice for high school and college?”

Ms. Conard: “Do your best and don’t sell yourself short. Surprises will always come! Also, don’t forget to have fun sometimes.”

The Shield: “What are your hobbies outside of school?”

Ms. Conard: “I like being active outside, such as running, kayaking, and I am picking up mountain biking. I also love hiking.”

The Shield: “If you could have a lunch meeting with any living person, who would you choose and why?”

Ms. Conard: “Honestly, I would just love to spend time with my friends.”

The Shield: “What made you decide to pursue teaching as a career? Was it an instinctive decision, or did you consider other jobs before teaching?”

Ms. Conard: “My original major was physical therapy, and I had not even considered education until some of my friends were changing their majors to teaching. Then I remembered that the thing I enjoyed the most is working with kids, and I decided to change my major too.”

The Shield: “Why did you decide to teach Spanish?”

Ms. Conard: “Northmoor offered me a teaching position if I agreed to teach Spanish. I accepted and fell in love with it.”

The Shield: “What is your best teaching memory?”

Ms. Conard: “I absolutely loved going to Lorado Taft with Reservoir Gifted. Being able to see my students learn to share my love for the outdoors and learn to communicate with each other was fantastic.”

The Shield: “What do you look forward to this school year?”

Ms. Conard: “I look forward to getting to know new people, students, teachers, and staff alike. I have met many wonderful students and teachers here.”

The Shield: “If you could visit any place in the world for one week, where would you go?”

Ms. Conard: “I have always wanted to go to Spain. My retirement goal is to travel the world, and I love traveling. Spain is beautiful and a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. I also enjoy speaking with native Spanish speakers in Spanish.”

Thank you, Ms. Conard, and thank you for reading! We are glad to welcome her to the Richwoods community, and hope that she and all of you have a wonderful year!