Moving to a new school is never easy for students – and the same can be said for teachers starting in a new district. For English teacher Erin Tarver, who began working at LCM in August, the move has been an exciting change.

Even though Tarver is new to the district, she is no stranger to Southeast Texas. After graduating from Orangefield High School, she went on to attend McNeese State University, where she earned a degree in English-Creative Writing. Even though the teaching profession has not always been Tarver’s dream job, she said she knew in the back of her mind she would end up becoming a teacher of some sort. She originally wanted to become a writer for Saturday Night Live, but ultimately chose against it.

“That was the dream,” Tarver said. “However, you have to be funny to make it on there. If my lame jokes in class are any indication, I don’t think I’d last very long in that field.”

While working in sales at a popular cell service provider during her college years, Tarver said she found herself spending most of her time helping people understand their devices.

“I would spend hours with people showing them how to set up their social media accounts and how their phone/tablet worked,” she said. “A former coworker suggested to me that I should be some sort of teacher. With that suggestion, a light bulb went off. It wasn’t long after that conversation that I put in my two-weeks notice.”

Before making the move to LCM, Tarver taught 8th grade English at a charter school in Lake Charles, Louisiana, but wanted to get closer to her roots.

“The idea of coming back home, so to speak, was comforting,” Tarver said. “I knew that LCM was doing great things with their STEM Academy. When I heard that there was an opening for an English teacher, I slid in as fast as I could. I’ve loved every minute of being here.”

Tarver teaches English II and English III and has a passion for both reading on her own and teaching classic novels.

“My favorite book to teach would probably be ‘Night’ by Elie Wiesel or ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck,” Tarver said. “Those books deal with some difficult themes and situations, and I love seeing how students react to them. Outside of school, I would have to say probably ‘Habibi’ by Craig Thompson (is my favorite book). It’s actually a graphic novel. I had to read it in college for a Graphic Novel class. The story is so moving and the artwork is so incredibly detailed and intricate.”

Tarver said her goal for her English II students this year is to get them all to pass the STAAR test, which they will take in the spring.

“For both my English II and English III classes, I wish for my students to foster an appreciation for literature and be able to strengthen their writing skills,” she said. “Teaching was not my first choice of a career, but it is definitely so fulfilling. The face of a student that understands a concept that they’ve been struggling with makes the late nights and early mornings completely worth it.”