What is your name and department? My name is Carmen Al-Bazi; I work in the World Languages Department and also in the Multilingual Learners Department.
How long have you worked at Niles North? 25 years, but during the first seven years, I was in the EL department, and then in 2008, I transitioned to this position here.
Which one do you like better? Well, I was used to EL, but then since I transitioned to this new role, I’ve liked both. The people are very nice, and I enjoyed working here.
What has been your favorite part about Niles North? Well, witnessing when the Board of Education approved the Assyrian language course to be an accredited language course, that was amazing, because it was a long process. [For] almost eight years, we were trying to get this established. And so it was a great accomplishment. And at the same time, before that, there were no Chinese language courses, but I witnessed that too, but that was in 2014, I think, maybe earlier than that. So it’s nice, you know?
Why did you want to work in education? You know, I wasn’t planning on working here. And then in 2000, someone contacted me and said, “Hey, we need a tutor, or EL para for a newly arrived student that doesn’t speak English.” So that’s how I started working here. And, so then, I loved helping students, tutoring them in all subjects. So, I enjoyed working with kids.
What has been your proudest moment while working at Niles North? Just, I love helping people, it makes me feel good, you know? I really try my best to help people who need it, so. And, it’s a nice environment. The people are so nice, everyone here—it’s like my second home.
What words of wisdom do you have for aspiring teachers? It’s not an easy job—I’ve seen it with teachers trying to work with kids, but it’s a rewarding job too, so you just have to be patient and try different approaches to help students. And it’s so nice to see, later on, students graduating and accomplishing big things. Like, I’ve witnessed EL students who come to this country, no English, but then you see them flourish, accomplish a lot. It’s really something amazing to see them grow so much, and that’s all because of the teachers that we have here that care about each and every individual student.
Is there anyone specific whom you’d like to shout out for making your time here better? My department. Both World Languages and EL. They’re amazing people.
What are your plans for the future? Right now, my plans are to travel. I don’t know, maybe to the Middle East, maybe to Europe, I don’t know. And, also, I’d love to spend more time exercising, playing sports, and gardening—those are my hobbies.
