Love of Teaching Sparked by Publication of Children’s Book
In her classroom, Jasmine McGary MAT ‘24 integrates Black history in her curriculum as a way to ensure that students' identities and cultures are celebrated.
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By Carol Jean Tomoguchi-Perez
February 21, 2024 Teaching candidate Jasmine McGary’s path to being an educator began as an eighth-grader when she entered a writing competition and published her first children's book, Lily and the Seven Drops. Her experience reading the story to her former first-grade teacher’s classroom was an early moment where she developed a love for teaching children, she recalled. “I knew that teaching was a definite passion of mine when I realized how excited I was to go to work every day to educate our youth,” the Master of Arts in Teaching + Credential Program (MAT) Multiple Subject student observed. The Moreno Valley, Calif., native earned two associate degrees in humanities and communications at just 17 years old – thanks in part to a program at Moreno Valley College that allowed her to concurrently complete high school and college, and because of the unwavering support she said she received from her parents, sisters, community and mentors – especially Kama Burton and Camani Smith – who never stopped believing in her and were a driving force behind her success. |
Jasmine McGary
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She went on to UC Irvine, earning a degree in psychological science and a minor in African American studies in 2022. After graduating, she landed a long-term substitute position in a first-grade classroom in her hometown. “Their original teacher had, unfortunately, received a cancer diagnosis during the first few weeks of school, so I was called to step into her role for the remainder of the school year – which was one of my most rewarding experiences,” McGary recalled.
Susan Toma-Berge, the MAT program’s director of teacher education, shared, “Jasmine is an enthusiastic student in the program and has made positive contributions at her student teaching placement.”
In the MAT program, McGary was recently selected as a recipient of the Thriving Teacher Fellowship this year. “I believe I was chosen as a recipient because of my efforts to advance education within the undergraduate community at UCI about Anti-Blackness and racism,” she said.
“Jasmine is one of the most thoughtful and caring students I’ve gotten to know this year in the program,” said Myuriel von Aspen, multiple subject coordinator of the MAT Program. "She truly cares about our core commitments to inclusion, equity, and social justice. To support her classmates, she shared resources of read aloud books that they can use to diversify the stories that are read in their classrooms.”
Because McGary observed that discussions of Black history were often confined to the month of February or centered around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, she made a conscious effort in her first-grade classroom to regularly integrate lessons on Black history and culture into her curriculum.
“Black history deserves to be celebrated year round because Black history is American history,” she said. “Our society would not be what it is without the contributions of African Americans.”
Her goal as a teacher in diverse classrooms is to ensure that her students’ identities and cultures are celebrated. McGary said she has goals of cultivating an inclusive classroom culture that fosters a growth mindset, perseverance, positivity, community, and a love for learning.
“To me, every day presents an opportunity for students to learn about Black historical figures' lives and contributions, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Ruby Bridges, and many others,” she said. “By exploring their stories and the impact of their fight for civil rights, my students have gained a deeper understanding of our society today.”
Susan Toma-Berge, the MAT program’s director of teacher education, shared, “Jasmine is an enthusiastic student in the program and has made positive contributions at her student teaching placement.”
In the MAT program, McGary was recently selected as a recipient of the Thriving Teacher Fellowship this year. “I believe I was chosen as a recipient because of my efforts to advance education within the undergraduate community at UCI about Anti-Blackness and racism,” she said.
“Jasmine is one of the most thoughtful and caring students I’ve gotten to know this year in the program,” said Myuriel von Aspen, multiple subject coordinator of the MAT Program. "She truly cares about our core commitments to inclusion, equity, and social justice. To support her classmates, she shared resources of read aloud books that they can use to diversify the stories that are read in their classrooms.”
Because McGary observed that discussions of Black history were often confined to the month of February or centered around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, she made a conscious effort in her first-grade classroom to regularly integrate lessons on Black history and culture into her curriculum.
“Black history deserves to be celebrated year round because Black history is American history,” she said. “Our society would not be what it is without the contributions of African Americans.”
Her goal as a teacher in diverse classrooms is to ensure that her students’ identities and cultures are celebrated. McGary said she has goals of cultivating an inclusive classroom culture that fosters a growth mindset, perseverance, positivity, community, and a love for learning.
“To me, every day presents an opportunity for students to learn about Black historical figures' lives and contributions, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Ruby Bridges, and many others,” she said. “By exploring their stories and the impact of their fight for civil rights, my students have gained a deeper understanding of our society today.”
