Throughout my junior year, I met so many new and funny teachers who I got a kick out of going to their class every day. Coming into junior year at Arrowhead High School was a big deal for me—I didn’t know anyone or have any friends to talk to. On top of that, my mental health was in a deep hole. I had to learn the new campus and get to all my classes (in under four minutes during the passing periods) stressed me out. Especially when It was bigger than south campus, where I’d been for the past two years. 

I was also getting a new case manager who would help me make goals for junior year and help me with any work that I need outside of the classroom. This was going to be different too and already I was stressing about it and I am not the person that likes change.  

Over the summer, Mrs. Thompson sent my mom and me an email saying how she was going to be my new case manager and she also sent some information and pictures about herself. I was so happy and relieved to find out that she had two dogs!! Also not to mention one of her dogs has the same name as one of my dogs! I thought that was super funny and now not being able to meet her and talk about her puppies. 

Junior year was rough. I needed to learn every new teacher's name and had to figure out where my classes were in this big, never-ending maze of hallways. Not to mention how much of a mental and physical toll my job had taken on me. 

I was working at a dog daycare in Delafield—I had almost been there for a year. At first I loved this job, being able to fulfill my goal to work with dogs and having that unconditional love from them and having supportive co-workers that I thought I could call my friends! Then it eventually turned into a living nightmare; the manager of the daycare quit and the assistant manager too. EVERYTHING changed after they had left it's almost like the light switch turned itself off, no one pulling their own weight and helping out with the dogs and cleaning the facility to have people leave early and I had to be stuck there cleaning for an hour after my shift time ended. 

I just wanted to have a job with people I could call my friends and have connections with. Being stuck in that hole and depressed, Mrs. Thompson knew something was wrong and she sat with me to ask what's wrong, her always being so analyzing with students and taking time out of her day or putting down whatever she is doing just to listen to other students. She is always caring about how she can help in different ways. 

Mrs. Thompson is an amazing teacher being able to know what is going on and she gave me the option to work with a program that she says she swears by called DVR which stands for Department of Workforce Development. I soon got into the program and found a job that I loved with people I can trust. All thanks to Mrs. Thompson for being there when I needed her most!