Meeting Ms. Herris

Having a teacher that doesn’t only teach you and get you ready for the future, but a teacher that can be your friend also, someone you can joke around with and someone you can rely on, is the best thing to have in school. Ms. Herris is the type of teacher that will be there for you no matter what.

 

Teacher at MSH

Stephanie G. Herris is a 9th grade intensive reading teacher at MSH. She always wanted to be a teacher. “It was my dream job,” she stated. “I would pretend I was a teacher to my stuffed animals at age 6 or 7.”

Many things made Ms. Herris want to be a teacher, especially her love for teaching. “I love being in that environment,” she said.

She enjoys teaching 9th graders. “Aside from getting attached to my students, the best thing is being able to see them grow throughout high school,” she said.

Not only does she enjoy teaching the students here at MSH, she also likes the staff. “I love teaching here! It’s like a family because the staff is very welcoming,” she says. “I’ve met so many teachers, socially so fast.

 

Previous jobs 

Ms. Herris wasn’t always a teacher. “While I was an undergrad,” she said, “I worked an office job at the family courthouse when I was 19 to 23 years old.” She says her job as a teacher is more exciting than working at the courthouse.

 

Professional Development Coordinator at MSH

Not only does Ms. Herris teach, but she’s also the professional development coordinator at MSH. Basically what she does is propose the workshops for MSH teachers for teacher planning days and early release days.

She doesn’t think that it’s difficult, it just takes time. “It’s just getting used to the process, not hard,” she said. Being professional coordinator does take away from her free time and teaching time, but she says, “It’s my first year. Once I get a hang of it, it won’t be so time-consuming.”

 

Life outside of school

Ms. Herris was born here in Miami, and just like any other teacher, she has a life outside of school. She’s bilingual, speaking both Spanish and English fluently, even though her first language was Spanish.

She likes to read and work-out. She enjoys watching make up tutorials in YouTube and trying it on herself. She says, “I like doing my own make up because I know the exact amount of make up to put on.”

Ms. Herris attended South Miami High School and played tennis for their team there. She also attended Miami-Dade College for 4 years and earned her bachelor’s degree in Exceptional Student Education (K-12).

Like most teachers, she doesn’t work during summers, winter breaks, or spring breaks, but she hasn’t done much traveling because she was doing her master’s degree in Curriculum Instruction with a Concentration in Literacy. She finished that degree this year.