“She told me if your head’s not in it, don’t do it”

 Ms. Maria, a current ARC staff member at Animo Jefferson Charter Middle School supervising the 8th grade students, talks about her career journey so far. 

We discover the many negatives and positives she must face in her career. Not only that but a main goal or dream that she strives to achieve. 

I have trouble answering the simple question of “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I have no idea.  So by talking to Ms. Maria, maybe learning her story will help me create a path myself on my focus. 

TRANSCRIPT:

Hayley Nungaray: Alright..actionito.

Maria: No Johana you can’t use it.

HN: ACTIONITO

M: That’s not even a word.

HN: It is it’s my word.

M: Ok what’s your question.

HN: Ok. Tell us about yourself .

M: K, my name is Ms. Maria i work with Arc at Animo Jefferson and I supervise the 8th graders. 

HN: And I’m your favorite..ok..

M: Okay.

HN: Whaaaaa, what made you choose your current career? 

M: Ummm honestly I still don’t know what I wanna do but I don’t enjoy working with students. uhh I guess when I was in school I used to help out teachers, like I would stay after school instead of going like to program I would stay with them and just help them out.

HN: Do you enjoy what your doing? 

M: Yeaa, I mean yes I do cause sometimes…sometimes you guys say the weirdest things and its just funny. 

HN: This is a question from me ummm, would you rather teach another grade level than us? 

M: Than the 8th graders? Actually I do also work with elementary, but with them it’s a different way you have to talk to, you have to talk to them, so with you guys, its like I could talk to you guys in a way that you guys would understand, so pretty much kinda cool..and at the same time I have to be strict with you guys and with my elementary students I can’t. 

HN: What would you say like the um.. the thing you really dislike about your job though.

M: What I dislike about my job? ……I don’t think I have anything cause I wouldn’t say like a bad student is what like ticks me off cause its not cause..there’s a reason why he’s acting that way, so once he’s acting that way I try to.. to talk to them and see what how I could help them for them not to be acting like in that way. 

HN: Okay, continue, anything you’d do differently?

M: Like within clubs or like in programming? or- 

HN: In general like with your career path. 

M: With my career..ok. um well look I wanna be a teacher for um special ed, so what I would do differently is actually try to work with special ed students instead of like I guess regular students. Yea that like the only thing I think I’d do differently. 

HN: Mmm did you face any challenges when choosing this career? 

M: Mmm, actually yea because when I first was working I was working in a fast food restaurant and I really hated it like working there like really hated it. Soo.. Soo ummm so yea I really hated working there so I just decided to apply for after school jobs. 

HN: How did you see like this program? 

M: How did I find out about this program? actually well since I work with the morning program i just a different district ummm they had a flyer so I just applied. And yea.

HN: Ummm what would you say are your strengths and weaknesses when working? 

M: My strength..

HN: Like what your really good at like..and what you like struggle on..

M: ummm, I guess you could say I work well with a team, so be a part of a team I think working with others is my strength and then my weakness would be..some I guess you could say I don’t like communicating a lot like with my staff members or with my co workers and like I feel that if I could handle it on my own I don’t need to communicate with you. 

HN: Uhhh what has always been your passion?

M: Helping others. And I feel that me working here you guys I’m actually helping you.. in a way that you guys actually have problems and I’m kinda like a counselor and you guys come to me and talk about them give you advice. Also art you could say.

HN: That’s why you always choose like art classes and everything?

M: Yea art club. 

HN: Cosmetology making the shirts and everything.

M: Yea. very like crafty stuff.

HN: Alright ummm, any goal you hope to succeed in the future? 

M: Any goals ummm.. well I  have my actual career which is to be a teacher right now I’m just getting experienced with working with arc, having my house, ummm and that’s pretty much it other than that everything is..

HN: How do your parents feel about your career? 

M: My parents..honestly my mom is very like how can put it…she’s not like um.. she’s more strict on me going to school but if it’s not like, she told me if your not if your heads not in it then don’t do it then why are you actually going if your not gonna go. so she’s more of like i’m lenient with me actually like finishing um like going to school and stuff like that and um my dad he’s like I mean whatever you do your gonna do fine, whatever career you choose your gonna be fine.

HN: So they support you..

M: Yes but at the same time she’s like dude you’re already 25 you should be having like your career already..cause my sister she had her career probably at like 26.

HN: What she working?

M: She works at the court..yea.

HN: ummm…is there anything you’ve ever wanted to ask me? 

M: What do you wanna do when you grow up?

HN: I don’t know.. there’s like a bunch of things that like I’m thinking about but I’ve never actually tried them.

M: Well what is one thing you really wanna do? … cause I could tell you all the other jobs like I really wanna do all the careers I want..

HN: I have no idea I dunno, my mom was telling me like I should probably work no you told me something about fashion and then I would-

M: I think I also told you about cosmetology but like you actually doing the makeup which is kinda like a scientist.

HN: I told my mom about that she said like that could be a good side job..

M: Yea it can. 

HN: Other from your like-

M:  Well technically your a scientists.

HN: No she’s talking about like the makeup thing. 

M: Oh you actually doing- no I’m talking about you actually forming the product, that’s like you would actually be like a scientist cause its like chemicals and stuff like that..

HN: I’ve always like wanted to do something like in the music industry not singing but like manager type of thing like to work with artists and everything..

M: Mmm but like a producer?

HN: yea.. and like I’ve always mention that [unknown].

M: I mean they they do make money you just have to do really good anything really makes money if your really passionate about it or if your really like focused on it..

HN: Well my moms also said surgery and then doctor cause they make good money ..but she said-

M: That’s’ pretty much like medical school.

HN: Yea and that you have to do more school that’s kinda I was just like..thats thats that.

M: Yea..I mean the other job that I would really wanna do is to be a flight attendant..

HN: You’re not scared of heights?

M: No you get you get to travel and you get paid at the same time.

HN: That’s cooool.

M: Yeaa .

HN: But like you just, but you don’t get off the plane like-

M: You do get off the plane, you get off  you just.. yea you get off the plane to get on the other plane [laughs] .

HN: What the-

M: So like technically you do like 16 no not even 16 like 24 hour shift you do like non stop back and forth..yea..

HN: You do that like every day of the week? 

M: Ummm no they have their schedule is like totally weird like let’s say you work for 3 straight days and you rest for 3 days. 

HN: Mmm that’s crazy..

M: And where ever you land that’s where you get to chill, or you could go back home..

HN: That’s crazy…

M: Yea..

HN: Now you got me all interested. 

M: Yea its cool..like..my actually one of my favorite teachers actually told me you should be a flight attendant and you you have the height for it.

HN: Oh me?! 

M: Yea, they actually get um you have to be at least 5’7 or 5’8  to be a flight attendant.

HN: I’m 5’4 or like 5’4 and a half almost 5’5.

M: You look like 5’5 your pretty tall for your age..

HN: Yeaa….

M: Oh yea that’s like if you would say what’s my dream job that would be my dream job.

HN: But you had said a bartender like you would want your own store-

M: Oh for my bartender would  be like my side job, but yea I think I still have time to be a flight attendant cause then you don’t-

HN: I’m just scared of heights though all that stuff so I’m scared of them only because the chance of them uh crashing..

M: I mean it’s very high like very high it’s not a very high risk it’s like actually a low risk of them crashing and stuff, but actually I was very afraid of um airplanes until I had to like go, go to visit my grandma because like um her arm had like, she bumped her arm, and shes like very old and I had to fly to Mexico and at the time I really wasn’t worried about like the flight I was more worried about my grandma so I don’t think I really experienced the flight and then the next time I got on it I was like oh it’s fine …nothing really happened.

HN: Alright and we are done…