On the weekends, stepping through the soft sand ripples as the golden morning sun peaks above the horizon, Marcia Amegadzie begins her day on a peaceful note. The sound of the waves crashing against each other and the crisp morning air – here is a place where she charges the calm and patience that fill her classroom.
At school, students know Buena’s P.E. and college & career teacher, Amegadzie, for her kind, inviting smile and genuineness. Several days a week, she stands at the front of her classroom, helping to guide students in figuring themselves out and fulfilling their future they’ve set out to achieve. Each and every day she spends up there, there is something she gives them all, whether they see it or not, the raw person behind the teacher.
In the evenings after a long school day, she spends her time doing what keeps her tranquility. You may catch her drinking chai or herbal teas, or relaxing at home and finding something to watch on TV.
As you would expect from a P.E. teacher, inside or outside the house, getting exercise and fresh air is important to Amegadzie whenever she can fit it in. Throughout her life she’s been in sports teams for rugby and soccer, and although she is no longer in sports, Amegadzie still makes time to move. Whether it is home weight training or morning jogs, she gets it done.
“I do have an exercise routine. I try to get up. I’m a morning person, so usually if I’m going to get exercise, it’s always first thing in the morning,” Amegadzie said.
Much of her free time revolves around her grandson. On weekend days not spent on grading, Amegadzie and 10-year-old Jamail spend a lot of time together.
“[After a long day], I go home, make a cup of tea and find a good movie to watch. If my grandson’s with me, we’ll usually watch a movie of his choice together,” Amegadzie said. “My hobby would have to be my grandson. It’s all about him.”
There is a beautiful place called Jamaica where Amegadzie calls home. For someone who lives such a laid back, relaxed and calm lifestyle, Amegadzie has been to many places and seen many things.
“I was born in Jamaica, [but]I grew up in Canada. I’ve lived in North Carolina, I lived in Indiana and my final destination…is California,” Amegadzie said.
Amegadzie has had family vacations to different countries, like Ghana in Africa and Tulum in Mexico, but what stood out to her was the experience traveling to Ghana.
“[Ghana] was great. Just knowing how similar Ghana is to Jamaica, with the beaches and the people,” Amegadzie said. “I really loved that… It was just so many people that I could relate to, and that looked like me, looked like [my] kids… It felt like home.”
Similarly, that ‘at home’ feeling that Amegadzie values is an experience brought to life every day in her own classroom. She is an understanding person who only wants the best for her students, and they see it too. One of her many 9th grade students in her college and career class, Reese McDuffee, is someone who notices the calm she can give to a class with questions.
“[Amegadzie] is a very kind teacher,” McDuffee said. “She has a lot of patience for students who have a harder time understanding what she’s teaching, and she always helps them.”
With such an impact on young minds, Amegadzie describes that she feels like she gives her students at school the only version of herself that there is. The one that does her best to be forgiving, generous, kind and down to earth with them.
A simple woman with a humble mind and genuine intentions as a teacher and a person, Buena’s college and career teacher Amegadzie sees potential even when we don’t. Guiding her students into their own futures with grace and patience, she makes an impact that lasts long after they leave her classroom.
“I’m hoping students respect me as a teacher, and I try very hard to not disrespect students or treat them poorly. So I hope they see that, and it’s like a give and take,” Amegadzie said.
