For math teacher Nicole Ross, every day is an opportunity to practice discipline and hard work. On top of spending many hours outside of school to help her Algebra II and Geometry students succeed, she coaches cross country, where she uses similar methods of self-discipline.

  Ross’s favorite subject is math, and she strives to help her students feel welcome and understand the material. She makes sure that she explains everything in a way that her students will understand, and she teaches concepts multiple times if it did not make sense to her students the first time.

  “I always open my door. It’s available for the kids to come in and get extra help,” Ross said.

   Though it has only been a few days since she first started teaching at Etowah, Ross already loves the atmosphere.

  “I love Etowah. I love the administration and the kids and the coworkers. Everyone is very great,” Ross said.

  Ross loves seeing her students and coworkers. Her favorite part about teaching is what she calls the “aha moment,” when students finally understand something.

  “I love it when the kids are working so hard on something that they don’t get it; they don’t get it; don’t get it and then they do. It’s always exciting,” Ross said.

  Etowah is welcoming Ross the same way she welcomes her students to class each day with open doors and ready to run through the year.