Among the new hires at Hastings High School this year is Ms. Ashley Wagner, who is teaching AP United States History as well as Economics. This is Ms. Wagner’s fourth year as a teacher, as last year she taught in Rye, and in the previous two years she taught in Roscoe, New York.
“In Roscoe, I was the only Social Studies teacher at the school. So, I’ve done a lot–I’ve taught every required class in the NY State curriculum. I’ve taught APs and electives so far and I’ve been to all sorts of different demographic areas. It’s still pretty early in my career but hopefully this is my last destination.”
Despite her love for teaching, this profession has not always been Ms. Wagner’s dream. She originally wanted to be a veterinarian, but after discovering her weakness was in math, she decided against it. She also considered being an environmental lawyer but ended up majoring in political science and economics. When she was in college, Ms. Wagner realized she wanted to work in government or legislation, and “really just wanted to help people.”
However, while doing an internship for a state senator, she realized that she did not enjoy the work she was doing.
“I was just basically staring at a screen all day and I felt like I wasn’t helping anyone or making much of a difference,” Ms. Wagner expressed.
So, she started working as a tour guide and volunteering as a Girl’s Scout leader, and she grew to love working with other people. Since she still wanted to be involved with history and politics, but also maintain the social aspect of working with others, she thought that teaching might be the way to go.
“What really sealed the deal was [when I was] in college in 2016 during the presidential election. People just had no clue about how the government works. So, I thought teaching would be somewhere where I could help people and they could make better decisions, and understand the world better, and I would get the type of work environment that I enjoy.”
Ms. Wagner says her favorite part about teaching is “getting to share what [she] love[s]” with other people. Especially with high school students, she likes being able to have deeper conversations and debates while also being able to make jokes and have fun.
In regards to the Hastings community so far, Ms. Wagner appreciates how helpful everyone has been in adapting to the school and how friendly the environment is. She is enjoying it so far and hopes Hastings “will be [her] final destination!”
