As a theater enthusiast herself, teaching students who love theater just as much as she does is the perfect job for Charlotte Forrest, the new Drama teacher.

“I found where I’m supposed to be,” Forrest said.

Forrest grew up in Powder Springs, Ga., and majored in teaching theatre at Columbus State University. She always loved drama and theatre, and was in shows throughout middle school and high school, even in college. The love she had for acting fueled her to teach.

“It was always my plan to teach,” Forrest said.

Her first show was a Christmas pageant when she was five, and she played an angel. Her favorite show was her college musical, “Caroline or Change”.

“It was a lot of fun,” Forrest said. “The people I got to work with were amazing.”

While Forrest does not have any children, she does have two cats that she loves very much. Watching Netflix, sleeping and catching up on today’s latest movies fills Forrest’s free time.

Compared to other schools where she has taught, Etowah is bigger than most, but it is also a lot more supportive.

“Just my first days here, people were coming out of the woodwork to offer help and resources,” Forrest said.

It is not only teachers helping her out, but students too. Students who have done drama in the past were letting her know that anything she needed, she could just come to them and they would be happy to help.

“Before, it was sorta like ‘Hey you’re on your own’, but now it’s different,” Forrest said.

And the students are pleased with the efforts of their new teacher.

“She’s doing a really good job. We do different activities that lead to the lesson we are learning and it is a lot of fun. She is very organized and I feel drama will improve greatly with her here,” Megan Crosby, junior, said.

But she is not the only Forrest in town. Her husband is a literature teacher at Etowah. The couple is able to carpool and understand what is going on at work.

“If one of us was a brain surgeon, then, you know, they would try to talk about work and the other one wouldn’t understand what they’re talking about,” Forrest said. “It gets difficult. But with this, we can sort of empathize with each other.”

The Forrests were both hired as Resident Assistants at Columbus University. They helped students with problems in their dorms, helped freshmen find their way if they are lost and planned programs and events for residents.

Forrest did not realize her future husband had also been hired as an R.A.

“He came onto my hallway to introduce himself, and I actually thought he was a freshman that was trying to move in early”, Forrest said. “So I stopped him and said ‘You’re not allowed to move in until next week’ and he said ‘No, I work here’ and I said ‘No I work here’.”

Forrest enjoys teaching drama and plans for the group to do “The Giver” for One Act Competition in October. The spring 2016 musical was announced to be “The Pajama Game.”