Lydia Taylor (287)
As students usher back into the school year, they have new classmates, goals, rosters, and even new teachers. This year, Central welcomes several new teachers, including one of our very own, Ms. Hawkins, class of 259. Following her graduation from Central High School, Ms. Hawkins attended Howard University as a chemical engineering major before beginning her career as an engineer at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. There she worked for a decade to grant patents to different technologies prior to their introduction to the market.
Around 2020, Ms. Hawkins began living abroad for extended periods of time, from South America to Southeast Asia. Even while she was out of the country, Hawkins was able to kickstart her teaching career by teaching math and science remotely and in person to non-English-speaking students. It was not until last year that Ms. Hawkins returned to Philadelphia and eventually accepted her position as she “always wanted to teach chemistry.”
As a new teacher at Central, Hawkins believes “fun should exist in classrooms” and curates her class such, mixing in “optimism, fun, excitement” to keep her students engaged. Hawkins also expresses the ease of teaching at a school like Central, where she knows that students are excited and willing to learn new things.
One of the more significant experiences undergone by Chemistry students and teachers is the addition of Chemistry honors classes, as a result of which many students’ rosters were altered despite already being settled into the year. However, both Ms. Hawkins and Chemistry Honors student Isobel Owens (287) have expressed positive feelings surrounding the topic. Ms. Hawkins touched on “how important it was for those students, who weren’t initially admitted, to have access to higher-level courses. Owens’s experience supports this idea, as her class period was switched from a regular to honors chemistry class, which is what she originally applied for. The outcome “really did benefit” her, allowing her to take an advanced class, which she may not have otherwise had.
The arrival of Ms. Hawkins this school year sets off a new chapter for the chemistry students of Central High as she creates a unique learning environment, encourages a positive relationship with science classes, and is welcomed into the school community for the 26-27 school year.
