What is your name and department? My name is Jessica Ralfs and I’m in the English Department.

How long have you been teaching at North? I’ve been teaching at North for 10 years now.

What made you want to become a teacher? When I was a kid I was incredibly bossy and would make my younger sisters do lessons with me in the basement. I would literally lock them down there and make them do lessons and I think that teaching really appeals to my bossy features. And I like students better than adults.

How do you cope with the stress that comes from teaching? I think teaching has a lot of stress and the way that I cope with it is by everyday I make myself go outside for a 20 minute walk and just getting that break makes me a lot better for my students later on in the day.

What is your favorite hobby to do? Probably biking and reading but not at the same time though. I really like bike rides since they make me feel really good and reading just really calms me down and I love being able to go into a different world by reading. 

Do you have a favorite movie or show? My favorite movie lately has been Baahubali which is about this big epic movie that has romance, drama, singing, and a lot of action which I love. 

Do you have any pets? I have two cats that are the loves of my life, Scout and Oliver. I love them very much and my students hear about them a lot.

How would you describe your fashion sense? I like to try and wear fun things that have fun patterns but I also like to steal things that I’ve seen other people wear. I definitely see a student, or my sisters, or another teacher wearing something, I’ll think about how I’m gonna make that outfit later.

Is there a quote you’re inspired by? If so, what is it?  I don’t really have a quote I find inspiring, but I have a poem. It’s called Wild Geese by Mary Oliver, and I like to read or think about it when I’m being too hard on myself or having a bad day. It reminds me that the world is a huge, beautiful place, and I’m happy just to be in it.

What is a valuable thing you would tell a new teacher? I would tell a new teacher to have fun because I think that my issue when I became a new teacher was that I was always so stressed about everything I had to get done and trying to be the best. I think I would say relax a little bit and enjoy the ride a little bit.