LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Beatrice Cook-Mitchell received more than 30 nominations from both current and former students. The following profile is a summary of these nominations.

"Wanting it is just a day away from having it. It's all about the desire within."
- Beatrice Cook

This quote summarizes what Mrs. Cook-Mitchell is all about. Time and time again, she demonstrates to her students and colleagues that she has a strong desire to help others. She continually shows how she values students, regardless of their religion, gender, race, or sexual orientation. 

Mrs. Cook has been teaching at Blue Mountain for ten years, and has taught many valedictorians and beta club members during this time. As an English teacher, Mrs. Cook helps students understand the wonders of literature. Her classroom is filled with posters of learning strategies and writing techniques, and she plays soothing music to ease her students’ minds. All you feel is love and respect.

Mrs. Cook helps her students and gives them the courage to keep pushing, even at their weakest moments. One year, when her students took their state standardized test, they came in 14th in the entire state. She sets high standards for her students because she knows they’re capable of meeting them. She believes they can make a mark on this world, and in return, they want to make her proud. 

No matter what, she never gives up on her students, and she loves them like they were her own children. She lets students learn in whatever way works best for them. She’s always committed to helping students finish their work and do their very best. Some of her students even see her as a maternal figure because of her tough love and guidance. Mrs. Cook treats her colleagues the same way; she would never let a teacher ever go empty-handed. If another teacher needs help with anything, she’ll be there.

Is she a leader? Yes, yes she is. Mrs. Cook speaks in front of people and is not afraid to be herself. Every single year, she shows her leadership more and more. For example, when students put on a play two years ago, she led them and made sure they rehearsed their lines. She even teaches others how to stand out from the people who do wrong. If a fight break out, Mrs. Cook will be the first to break it up. Her leadership skills make it easier for people to know who she is. She is a tough lady who will speak her mind, especially when it benefits students.

Outside of her classroom, Mrs. Cook is very supportive of her school and has the best school spirit, from wearing pink hair to dressing up as a fairy. She supports the basketball, fast-pitch, and baseball teams whenever she can, even going as far as purchasing equipment for the athletes to use. In short - she’s a perfect example of Cougar Pride!

Although she likes to have fun, Mrs. Cook maintains a professional attitude, and her work and students are her number one priority. The way she acts is so elegant and unique, and she makes it a point to instill manners in her students.

Mrs. Cook is also a strong woman of faith. She has been through a lot and still has faith. One year, she noticed some symptoms and went to the doctor’s office to have them checked out. The results revealed a horrifying illness: breast cancer. Despite this difficult diagnosis, she continued to make time for her students, even when she underwent chemotherapy. She taught her students to always have faith and to remain positive. Even on her worst days, she continued to put this bright smile on her face that lit up more than the room. Her faith paid off - after months of suffering, Mrs. Cook finally went into remission.

Below are a selection of quotes from her students discussing her impact:

“Mrs. Cook gave the most amazing speeches and always wanted the best for my class. She would sometimes tell us about certain things that would happen to us as an example and would always give us advice. One time, she told us when she was young, she was working at McDonalds. A very rude customer came in and started to say mean things to her. She responded to him by saying, ‘Can I take your order, please,’ and she did. After that, the lady behind the rude customer told her she did a great job and gave her a tip...The way she spoke and the lessons she taught us showed us how educated and how respectful she is.”

“When Mrs. Cook was diagnosed with cancer, we all felt terrible. She told us not to let it get us down when things like this happen. There is always going to be a way out. You just have to keep pushing and things will get better...When she was sad, she did not show it because she wanted us to keep our heads up.”

“Mrs. Cook aided me through depression and the struggles it brought me,” said a student. “She was the first one to know that I was struggling and encouraged me to reach out for help. If it wasn’t for her guidance, I wouldn’t be who I am today and would most likely be in a similar situation.”

“Personally, Ms. Cook helped me to want to read, write, and work harder. She helped me to understand how to use certain punctuation marks in my writing. She taught me things that I never thought were used, but they were.”

“When I was in Mrs. Cook’s class, I always thought I was just an average student, and that I wasn’t smart. Then, she told me I can be as smart as any other kid in the class, and she told me I was. From that day on I always made good grades and good behavior.”

“She would always say, ‘You reap what you sow!’ Boy did that moral work in her favor. All the lives she has touched, gloomy days she made vibrant, and kids, not one of them her own, she has loved endlessly...everyone should aspire to capture her essence and walk this life in a similar way.”

“Mrs. Cook did the right thing. If she didn’t do it that day, she would do it the next. Her faith made it easier for people to be around her. Letting her light shine bright is what she did best. For all the things she has done and is still doing, she is a LifeChanger.”

“A LifeChanger is a person who changes your life forever. When I hear the word LifeChanger, the first person I think of is my reading teacher, Mrs. Cook. I have always written little books that I’d never finish, and I give Mrs. Cook the ones that are finished and let her read them. She would tell me to chase my dream and never stop running until I have reached my goals, but to also make new ones after I achieve the one I’ve already reached. She would inspire me so much to make things I would never want to make.”

“When I was starting out in the 6th grade, I had a very low score when starting to write, but now, since she explains everything in writing, I have made 9’s and 10’s on the tests I’ve done so far. She taught me how to make my writing better and more presentable. She taught me how to put commas in the right area, how to avoid run-on sentences, how to use proper nouns/nouns correctly, etc. She also taught me about independent and dependent thoughts, what an adjective is, and about first, second, and third person points of view.”

“One time, I was hanging out with the wrong crowd, and I got in trouble for it. So, Mrs.Cook encouraged me to not hang out with them anymore. Also, she wants us to not bully each other, and to not listen to negative things other people say about us. Mrs.Cook wants us to all get along and not talk about each other, because you are supposed to treat others the way you want to be treated.”