Shannon Wiza

Ms. Shannon Wiza
Seventh Grade Language Arts
Room 209
smwiza@cps.edu

If someone told me twenty years ago while sitting in my seventh grade classroom that I was going to be a seventh grade teacher I would have considered them crazy!  My plans had me leaning towards something in marketing or perhaps media.  Nonetheless, throughout high school and college the counselors gave many questionnaires to help determine one’s career path, and my results always steered towards working with children.  Following graduation from the University of Cincinnati with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication, I moved to Chicago and began looking for a job in the business world.  After working in corporate America for a few years, I found myself substitute teaching.  I realized not only did I need to go back to graduate school to become a teacher, but I missed my calling and should have listened to the results of my career surveys way back when! I went on to pursue and receive my Masters in the Art of Teaching from National-Louis University.

Changing careers has been a valuable adjustment in my life.  Being passionate about what I do has changed my outlook on everything.  I strive to ensure students are as enthusiastic as I am about being in the classroom.  I pride myself on coming up with ways to keep the students engaged, foster their eagerness to learn and instill a pursuit of lifelong learning.  Not everyone knows what they want to do when they grow up, but as long as my students know education is the norm and not the exception, I know they will be EXCEPTIONAL!

I was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, moved to Cincinnati for school and then on to Chicago.  After living in Chicago for a few years I moved to Boston for a brief stint and missed the Windy City so much I had to come back!  I am an avid sports fan, amateur photographer, and frequent traveler.  I am looking forward to the 2011-2012 school year adding another chapter in my Newberry Academy adventures.