LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Mrs. Levesque has spent the last 20 years contributing to the lives of children and families in East Texas at Chapel Hill Independent School District in Mount Pleasant, Texas. She is a strong believer in teaching her students to dream big. She knows that influences and experiences during elementary school have the greatest effect on how a child develops and becomes an adult. The ideas and beliefs instilled in students by parents, family, and friends during their upbringing are usually the strongest. 

Northeast Texas is a close-knit area that many call home. Growing up in rural East Texas provides students with a more limited worldview than students in urban settings. Some students land at a college, with most students majoring in agricultural sciences. Some graduate and work in the surrounding farming, ranching, and trailer manufacturing industries. Others either learn a trade, join the military or, unfortunately, drop out of school. Most remain in their town or the surrounding county.

Eight years ago, Mrs. Levesque and a group of teachers began to brainstorm ways to expand the worldview of their fifth graders. They wanted their students to walk on college campuses, tour museums, dine in a restaurant, try new foods, ride an elevator, pack a suitcase, sleep away from home, meet different kinds of people, and make real life connections with things they have studied in school. From that meeting, the fifth grade field trip was born. It has evolved into a trip involving 80 students, 30 parents, 4 teachers and 1 nurse. What was found in the initial planning stages was that students did not travel because their parents had not traveled. Mrs. Levesque committed to making this a trip that would change the lives of her students and their parents.

It takes a year to raise the funds and gather the necessary supplies. Students and parents make payments on their trip all year, and many are given scholarships to help them go. The school district financially supports the trip, local businesses donate money and supplies, and the teachers work hard to make it happen. There is a closet filled with suitcases, pillows, sleeping bags, towels, and black basketball shorts. Three t-shirts are included in the cost of the trip. There is a toiletry drive and every student has a baggy filled with shampoo, conditioner, a toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant and a comb.

They leave early on a Wednesday on two tour buses and return late Friday. The stops include: Baylor University, Inner Space Caverns, San Antonio Zoo, The Alamo, The Riverwalk, Rainforest Café, Texas State Capitol, Texas State Cemetery, the Treaty Oak, Texas State History Museum, Jalapeno Tree Restaurant, LBJ Library, and the University of Texas at Austin. Each year, parents and students describe how the trip changed their lives. Mrs. Levesque helped to create and design this life-changing endeavor, and she has worked hard for the last 10 years to make it happen. She has said that the fifth grade field trip is one of the most important things she has done for children and families in her teaching career.

Mrs. Levesque attended a small private college in Indiana and got a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work. She was drawn to a profession that assisted people in dealing with mental, emotional and behavioral issues. After graduation, she spent the early part of her career caring for children and families as a social worker. She worked in Child Protective Services (CPS) and as a counselor for children in a battered women’s shelter. These experiences helped her understand that she had a passion for working with children and families. As a result, she decided to be a school social worker. Upon moving to Texas, however, she soon discovered that most schools did not have social workers. She returned to college, got her teaching certificate, and began work on a Master’s degree in School Counseling. Immediately, she knew that from the four walls of the classroom, she could change lives.

"For me, teaching is social work and social work is teaching," said Levesque. "I am a better teacher because I know that my children are wonderful creations shaped by their genetics and life experiences. I know that children who have lost hope can exceed expectations when they are given the tools to be successful."

"It has been 20 years and I am still challenged and inspired by my students every day," Levesque continued. "It is my privilege, not my job, to walk alongside them as their teacher. Our journeys have been filled with celebrations, mourning, frustrations, accomplishments, laughter, and tears. And every day has been filled with simple acts that come with caring for one another and building a family. Although it is a goal, I have not yet finished my Master’s degree. I have been busy working to change lives by creating learners who question, wonder, and think. I do not have a counselor’s certificate hanging on my wall. However, my walls are filled with faces of children who now dream big dreams because they have seen a world beyond the rural farms and chicken houses of Titus County and they understand that education can change the direction of their future."

To be effective, great educators must speak the language of today’s youth. Teachers must be able to leave behind the era of the eighties with library books, maps, CD’s, movie projectors, and paper copies. Mrs. Levesque utilizes memes, YouTube, iTunes, eBooks, Google Classroom and the infinite capabilities of the Internet.

"If we teach like we were taught, classrooms will be silent, students will be filling in blanks, desks will be in straight rows, and the Waa Waa Waa of the Charlie Brown teacher voice will echo through the classroom," Levesque said. "And in those moments, creativity fades, enthusiasm withers, and children begin to see learning as something that binds them and not something that sets them free."

"The meeting of this challenge begins with me moving out of my comfort zone," Levesque continued. "It makes me pay attention to the things that are important to youth. It makes me become familiar with the devices and technology that they are using. It makes me watch and reference music and videos that kids gather around an iPhone and watch on a school bus. When I do this, I have found that kids relate. They are drawn in. They begin to do things and understand things that they would not do with a typical paper pencil task. Therefore I spend a lot of time searching YouTube for videos that relate to novels and concepts that we are learning in the classroom. I work hours after school designing lessons that appeal to these digital natives that reinforce grade level concepts while allowing them to also venture off into areas of learning that they find interesting."

Mrs. Levesque describes teaching as if it were a circus act, saying "It is a perilous tightrope walk for today’s teachers to remediate, enrich, and impart grade level skills, while utilizing 21st century resources that speak to our students. However, when done properly, the classroom is filled with voices, movement, and the excitement of kids becoming thinkers, problem solvers, and innovators. My lessons, novels, and resources change from year to year so they remain current and fresh. Gone are the days of teacher files that are used year after year. Lessons are like new cars, they are outdated almost as soon as you drive them off the lot. Therefore, every year my classroom is different. Novels change. Projects transform. I am different because the kids are different. In 20 years of teaching, I have never had a group of students that are the same. Their interests are unique. Their needs vary. Their characteristics are distinctive. They are a product of a society that changes like news headlines. The classroom of a great educator will be a mirror that reflects this ever-evolving culture that surrounds our youth. By recognizing this and being brave enough change ourselves, the way we teach, and our classroom, we can reach and teach 21st century students."

This year, Mrs. Levesque has been asked to use her innovative teaching techniques, artistic talents and enthusiasm to build a dynamic fine arts education for the Chapel Hill students at the secondary level. She is the new Fine Arts Director. With her leadership, she has branded the new Chapel Hill Fine Arts Program "Fine Arts on Fire." The new fine arts team has retired an ailing marching band program and revitalized an interest in the arts with more flexible options. Students develop bands based on their interest and talents, such as rock band, country western band, mariachi band, jazz band, etc. The old band hall has been transformed into a black box theatre that now serves as a Performance Hall with a sound system and stage. Once a month, students from all areas of fine arts have the chance to perform in the venue in an event called Club Red. The event has blossomed into two shows back to back once a month that includes an art show, vocal/band performances, video/film presentations and treats and coffee from the local coffee shop. Students learn to produce and manage a monthly show, market and sell tickets, set up and run lights and sound, and manage the finances.

Mrs. Levesque has many dreams and plans to transform the fine arts opportunities for students in rural East Texas. She has begun work on: a Fine Arts Channel, a film production department, and a fall and spring student film festival. She is working with her fine arts team to develop a physical and online store where students can market and sell their arts and crafts. Her team has begun the initial planning of a trip similar to the fifth grade field trip, where secondary students can travel and study the arts while learning more about the educational and career opportunities available in the fine arts. Mrs. Levesque developed, and is also leading, a school initiative where teachers and coaches work to share students so that they don't have to choose between academics, athletics, agriculture, or the arts. The "A Team" works to provide students with a robust resume of activities and achievements in all areas. She believes that these diverse experiences can help students tap in to unknown talents and also build educational opportunities for students from smaller school districts.

"Teaching students art, literature, history, writing, self-expression, globalization, and how to be a human being, are themes at the center of my fine arts classroom. And at this point in my career, I find myself inspired to teach these concepts through visual arts, theatre arts, music, dance, and technology," Levesque said. "I am interested in being part of a fine arts team that encourages all students to explore their creativity and talents. I desire to be a part of a fine arts program that works hand in hand with other teachers to reinforce concepts being taught in the classroom. I aspire to be a part of a fine arts program that creates a community where sharing is encouraged, so students can be academic, athletic, agricultural and artistic."

Mrs. Levesque teaches art, theatre, dance and college prep. Helping students from rural East Texas navigate the difficult process of applying to college is one of her passions. In November, she got up at 3:00 am and drove a student to Tyler, Texas, to meet a bus in order to attend a College Day at Texas A&M University.

"One third of American students are educated in rural schools. I am proud to say that I have devoted almost 20 years of my life to educating rural students and working with their families," Levesque said. "This may not be the greatest concern for all of Texas; however, visitors to our school will see the faces of children who live on farms and ranches that provide beef and poultry that other Texans cook for dinner each night. The challenges of rural school districts are unique and are overlooked...Rural schools have a smaller tax base, and that makes it more difficult to meet the demands required of 21st century schools. One of the problems within our state is the digital divide. Rural schools are working hard to provide the most current technology for students."