This is an open letter to my teachers in elementary through high school:

I am in the process of finishing and presenting my capstone for my major in History. A capstone is a twenty page paper and a presentation on a topic Mine is on Scotland and their role in the Crusdes, a topic that I chose, with great assistance from the history department at my college.

However, the credit does go towards the faculty here, but he journey to this point strted back in Pensacola, FL. To be honest, I can not remember exactly when I decided that I wanted to study history. In elementary school, I distinctly remember being salty about getting a C on a history test, and wondering what use the subject would be. I would guess that I started to really consider the idea in middle school, as I found the social studies classes I had taken to be quite interesting.

The moment came in high school, and in the tenth grade when I knew that I wanted to do something related to history. In AP World History, I had a very tough and demanding teacher who constantly gave us pop quizzes, and I had to read the book. While reading the textbook, I came across several curious things that made me really think. For example, how did the Ottoman Empire last from the late thirteenth century to the end of World War I? A whole heck of a lot happened. After AP World History, I took AP European History, and really enjoyed almost every second of it. That year, I took a US History honors class from Mr. Williams, a man who I didn’t realize at the time serve as my inspiration to become a teacher.

Between the summer of my junior and senior years of high school, Mr. Williams had a medical operation and was due to come back in the fall. Sadly, he passed away, and on that day, I decided to carry on in his footsteps.

So, to all of my instructors throughout the years, I will do my best to make you proud !