Between becoming a mother of four and having a full time high school teaching job, working for her doctorate had spread current English teacher Teresa Ibouhouten extremely thin.
Seven years after receiving her degree, she is now the newest teacher walking through Southport’s hallways. Although this is her first year here, she is no stranger to the level of work she’s up against.
“Its a small percentage of people that get their doctorate,” Ibouhouten said. “There’s a good reason for that.”
Ibouhouten, who has spent the last two school years as an elementary school principal in Illinois, is bringing her knowledge of English and the AP Research program to Southport.
She started her teaching career in Chattanooga, Tenn. in 2001 and then moved on to Loganville High School in Georgia in 2007. She began working towards her doctorate in teaching and curriculum through an online program at Northcentral University in 2011.
For her, pursuing a doctoral degree felt like taking on an additional full-time job on top of an already strenuous schedule. In the midst of her studies, she had her fourth child and then had to take a leave of absence.
However, in 2018, her hard work led her to become an official doctor.
“It is tough,” Ibouhouten said. “If you want to get it done quickly, I hope you don’t have a family… I hope you don’t have a full time job because it’s just not going to happen.”
Ibouhouten’s academic pathway, as well as her experience in teaching and leadership, made hiring her to teach AP Research and English at Southport an easy decision.
“(The hiring committee) was very impressed with what she has done,” Principal Amy Boone said. “We were extremely excited, (and) she really stood out.”
On June 25, Ibouhouten and her family moved from Illinois to the Hoosier State, where her husband is now working. She decided to step away from administration and return to teaching for her first school year in Indiana in order to ease her family’s adjustment to life in a new state.
“I want to be home when (my kids) are home and to be able to support them in these moves a little bit better,” Ibouhouten said.
She says that she would be open to going back into administration sometime in the future, but for now, she is happy where she’s at.
Stepping back into the classroom wasn’t the only major change Ibouhouten sought out after moving to Indiana. She also wanted to go back to working with high school students, an environment that she was more accustomed to.
“(The kids) were so cute, but elementary is not where I’m meant to be,” Ibouhouten said.
Upon coming to Southport, she received a very warm welcome. Although she is working somewhere entirely new, she already feels a sense of familiarity and is optimistic about the year ahead.
Ibouhouten hopes that students will walk out of her classroom with a greater appreciation for literature and the lessons that reading has to offer.
“(For students) this is the prime time to learn… and to improve oneself and one’s intelligence,” Ibouhouten said. “The older you get… you don’t think about changing the world. This age is when you can get motivated to make things happen.”
