She's a mom of four, her and her husband each have full-time jobs, and her two oldest daughters (age 14 & 13) are busy with extracurriculars, while her two youngest, a set of twins, are toddlers (age 3) who, naturally, keep any mom on her toes. Oh, and she just finished her Masters in Education program, less than a year after getting her Teaching Credential.
Joanna Gama starts her day at 5am every day. Her husband leaves early for work, so she is in charge of drop offs prior to going to work, as a special education teacher with Stockton Unified School District. Thankfully, though, she has great family support. So, while she drops off her 13 year old daughter at school and her twins at daycare, her mother-in-law drops off her oldest daughter at high school. Once the work day is over, Joanna picks up her twins from daycare while her sister in law picks up her second youngest daughter--who also plays softball, so sometimes drop offs/pickups are a correlated schedule. Her oldest daughter plays high school sports year around as well as competitive soccer, so she coordinates drop offs and pick ups for those sports as a correlated schedule as well, between herself, family, and friends.
Once home, Joanna’s evening routine consists of dinner, baths, homework, story time, and bedtime. So, how on earth did she do all of this while pursuing her teaching credential and then her masters degree?
“When people say it takes a village, it really does. In fact, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without them.”
Joanna actually tried to complete her teaching credential 14 years ago. But, when the opportunity arose, she found out she was pregnant with her oldest daughter during her last year of college. Her oldest daughter was 10 days old when Joanna graduated with her undergraduate degree. Then, just when she thought she could get into a program to finally complete her teaching credential, she found out she was pregnant with her second oldest daughter, only nine months after she had had her oldest daughter. It was then that she started teaching pre-K for Stockton Unified School District and decided that when she could, and the opportunity arose again, that she would get her teaching credential. Little did Joanna know, though, that her twins would come along years later. When she got pregnant with her twins, she thought it would be even more difficult to finish that teaching credential she so badly wanted so many years ago. Joanna was determined to still do it though.
The opportunity to finally pursue her teaching credential arose after her classroom turned into a full inclusion class and she fell in love with inclusion. Her administrators began asking why she never finished her teaching credential and told her there would be teaching positions opening the following year. However, Joanna knew she could not pursue her teaching credential without her family support. So, she took the time to think about it and discuss it with her family and present them the opportunity she had.
Joanna says she was very fortunate that her family knew it was her dream to finish her teaching credential. So, she came up with a game plan of who would do what with her kids, shared sport calendars, and even did daily text messages to everyone so they knew the daily plan. In order for her to be successful, she knew she had to manage her time well, setting time aside for school and for her family and prioritizing everything. This also meant that she had to delegate who would do the laundry, go grocery shopping, prep meals, the list goes on. Everything had to be planned out, and as long as everyone stuck to the plan, it was pretty easy for Joanna.
However, this is not to say that Joanna didn’t have difficult times throughout the program or days where she was exhausted. When those moments arose though, she reminded herself that there was a finish line to her game plan. Yet, she didn’t allow those challenging moments to stop her from pushing the envelope even more. Joanna decided that she wanted to pursue her masters degree in her second year of her teaching credential program. This meant she would be taking her credential courses and masters courses at the same time!
Now, although this decision made her life even busier, due to the additional assignments and homework, Joanna knew that her family already had their schedules set and had their routine, so it allowed her to be able to manage the additional workload.
Joanna is human, though, as we all are, and with that comes natural human reactions to daily life, not to mention the stress that comes with going to school. She admits that she did have her doubts and questioned whether or not she was going to be able to really do all of this, taking on the workload, her new teaching position, and stress on top of being there for her family. Joanna recalls a discussion she had with a friend and co-worker, who told her that Joanna knew how to do her job already, that she was knowledgeable and had so much experience and that she would be fine. She also reminded Joanna that they could support one another. After that talk, Joanna decided that if she could get her teaching credential and her masters, that she could do anything.
So, what would Joanna tell other moms who are thinking about pursuing their teaching credential and/or masters degree?
“If you believe you can and have the support, do it. It is worth every sleepless night, exhausted day, and stressful presentation.”
Not only did she prove to herself that she could do it, she showed her kids that they can finish their dreams if they put their mind, heart, and dedication to the test.
Here are some tips Joanna has for anyone thinking about getting their teaching credential and/or masters degree at Teachers College of San Joaquin:
Plan your day out.
Prioritize your day/people/things.
Believe in yourself!
Stay focused!
Keep notes-it's an easy way to remember, especially on your phone.
So, what was Joanna's overall experience at TCSJ?
“The majority of the instructors were pretty understanding, flexible and gave choices for assignments. I enjoyed my experience and learned so much about my specialty, was able to collaborate with peers and I learned from others knowledge, experience, and stories. It is attainable for sure whether one program or both depending on the person, their time management skills, and their work ethic/dedication.”
Finally, Joanna says that collaboration of co-workers, peers, friends, and family along with all their support made all of her success possible.
“When people say it takes a village, it really does. In fact, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without them.”
Interested in getting your teaching credential or getting a Master Degree? Check out TCSJ’s website for more information! https://www.teacherscollegesj.edu/