LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Brock Barcevic Posted over a year ago

I would like to nominate Mrs.Allen for Life changer of the year Mrs.Allen is my life changer cause she is helps kids through tough times. She creates a positive atmosphere when you walk into the room and if your having a problem somewhere out side of school or inside of school she will take time out of her day to help. Mrs.Allen also teachers her students how to cook,get jobs,and real world situations.Mrs.Allen is also working on something called The Cougar Closet where people in the community can go and get new or used clothes for free.Mrs Allen is an overal great teacher. Mrs.Allen I’m sure lots of people have said this but Mrs. Allen inspires me to keep making good choices and to stay on track.Mrs.Allen cares about all students she has and meets.She is also giving some high schoolers that graduate $500 dollars to help pay for college.

Colin compton Posted over a year ago

Why I nominated Angela Allen was because she is a life skills teacher that helps us succeed in life. She is funny. She makes food for the poeple that can afford food. She helps people that only have one pare of clothes and puts up a closet in her room for the clothes. I think she is a great teacher.

Lauren Abbott Posted over a year ago

I would like to nominate Angela Allen for Life Changer Of The Year, because she inspires me. Ms. Allen is an amazing teacher who loves to try new things and is very creative she has strived me to think of school a different way and think outside the box. Ms. Allen didn’t have a wonderful childhood when she was growing up she was on the poor side, but still had enough to get by. She did not let that get to her, because she strived not to be like her parent on the poorer side and was willing to work hard to make money and support herself. She became a teacher to help students with what they are going through. Ms. Allen is very creative teacher made an idea of the cougar closet where she can give back to students of all needs rich and poor. She always gives back to her environment. Always make sure students are first, before it comes to anything else. She always does what of right and is a very hysterical teacher. She is motivated to keep us on the right track and is always giving us lessons about life. She is such a bright and cheerful teacher and always looks at the positive side rather than the negative. Ms. Allen is always understanding she likes to build trust and friendship through each of her students. Her heart is like gold, sometimes you can’t express how she is an amazing teacher for she’s sweet, caring, but also responsible and will take full action of her choices.

Nina Moussavi Posted over a year ago

ANGELA is an absolute ray of sunshine. This world is a better place because of her presence. She inspires people to chase their dreams, work hard, be kind, and make a difference in the world. She is not only a life changing teacher, but a one-of-a-kind human. Thank you for everything that you do, Angela!

Haley Holzem Posted over a year ago

Angela is one of the most inspiring women I have met in my life. Her passion for teaching and guiding others is a natural quality in her. Angela is one of my biggest role models and continues to be my go-to person for every inconvenience (small and big). She has the biggest heart and sees potential in every individual no matter what, making her a one-of-a-kind teacher (one that I wish I was lucky enough to have growing up). Although she is not related to me by blood, she treats me like one of her daughters and I am forever grateful to have Angela by my side. She truly has changed my life and I do not know what I would do without her.

Kay Honeycutt Posted over a year ago

My heart is so filled with pride as I read these wonderful stories about my daughter, Angela Allen. I have always known that she was special and destined to make change in the lives of young people. Angela has been volunteering to help children as long as I can remember. She did not come from a wealthy family but has always reached out to those less fortunate. Her volunteer work began in grade school and has continued into her adult life. Her dedication has been limitless and she has touched so many young lives. She has taught her students and family how to feed the homeless, volunteer for special needs children, and care for the poor. Angela I love you and am so very honored to be your mom.

Lexi Woods Posted over a year ago

I totally agree! Her energy is contagious and helps make her the life changer she truly is. I nominate Angela Allen as a LifeChanger of the year. My mother, Angela Allen, has worked in various aspects of education for many years. During my childhood, she worked at my school as an administrative assistant, electives class teacher, and extracurricular leader. As a daughter, I have always looked up to my mother, but during my time as her student, I was able to witness her true gift – serving others, her community, and leaving every place a little better off than when she got there. Although my mother was not a licensed teacher at the time, she filled a much needed gap at my school and provided extracurricular and creative outlets for students. This ranged from writing the middle school plays; teaching numerous unique electives from yearbook, drama, poetry, and history in action; hosting afterschool service activities such as leading student volunteer opportunities at the local senior center, my personal favorite being a Mardi Gras parade we put on for the residents; organizing a canned food drive based off of Andy Warhol’s infamous Campbell’s soup art; the list goes on. We were living in a relatively small town and she constantly sought out opportunities to help students develop new skills, learn challenging subjects in approachable and memorable ways, and to help connect them with their community. Her quirkiness, creativity, and out-of-this world personality has enabled her to impact the lives of countless students, encouraging them and supporting them in accomplishing their goals. After some time out of the education world, largely in a move to help financially support my brother and I, my mother went back to obtain her teaching license. For the last several years she has been teaching family and consumer sciences to middle school students in Rolling Prairie, Indiana. In this role she teaches “life skills” including character development, financial literacy, digital citizenship, teamwork, cooking, health, and more. It is her actions and impact at New Prairie Middle School for which I nominate her as a LifeChanger. Not only has she made incredible differences in the lives of students individually, but she has also developed programs that have brought together not only New Prairie Middle School, but the entire community. Due to her own childhood challenges, she has been able to connect to students struggling and those often overlooked or written off. She gives everyone a chance to be themselves and a leader in her classroom. I have had the opportunity to come to her classroom several times over the years (often to discuss college, career opportunities, etc.) and am always flooded with comments from students about the ways my mother has impacted their lives. I always ask them their favorite lessons from her class and it is often either her lesson on choosing values over feelings or a lesson she gives on it “not being your time on the mountain.” Both focus on character development and overall life skills. As someone who has encountered their fair share of struggle, she is able to communicate in a relatable way that life will bring challenges – we are all born at different spots on the mountain – some at the top, some in the valley, but most people will have to go up and down that mountain several times throughout their life. Her students have told me how helpful that is in dealing with their personal struggles and that it has helped them persevere in times of difficulty. Her latest mission is to “change the face of poverty.” Growing up in a financially stressed household, my mother knew firsthand the help often needed, but also the embarrassment that came with the well-intentioned help. Some of her students face this same problem that she encountered so many years ago. From this, stemmed her latest community project in changing the face of poverty, the “Cougar Closet.” The Cougar Closet started off as a small clothing swap where people could donate and select clothes to take home that would be new to them. It not only helped those in need without singling them out, but also helped encourage students to save and to promote sustainable fashion. Everyone can participate. As such, students could take things home without being singled out or embarrassed and students without the same financial struggles are then able to save a few extra dollars that they can later donate, reinvest into their community, or set aside to help provide for their future. Today, with the help of her co-workers, supervisors, and students, the Cougar Closet has transformed into a thriving retail store, even hosting its own open house earlier this year. People from around the community have reached out and donated clothes and accessories that the students then wash, dry, iron or steam, repair, and prepare for presentation in the store. Students, families, and staff in the community then have the opportunity to take home items at no cost. From this project, the students have learned about the importance of community, service, teamwork, leadership, retail skills, financial literacy, and much, much more. This project and the impact it has made on the community truly makes my mother a LifeChanger. She has spent endless nights, weekends, and holidays finding ways to continuously improve this program and further develop opportunities and lessons for her students. She does this because of her commitment to service and to her students, always with a smile, and maybe a crazy performance or two. It has been the privilege of a lifetime to watch her journey as a true life changer, as a daughter and former student, and witness the energy, creativity, and love she brings to every community, every project, and every student.

Caitlin cooper Posted over a year ago

She’s really funny. She’s a good aunt. She’s kind, and spoils me rotten. She likes to play games, and is really good at them.

Lilian Slovacek Posted over a year ago

She is one of the best people I’ve ever met. She’s my aunt and she helps me get better at math. She’s super funny and nice. She likes to joke around a lot and tease people, but always knows how to make people laugh. I’m lucky I get to be her niece.

Dean Allen Posted over a year ago

This student must know my wife well. Yes, she is a little 'crazy' as the song above says. But she loves her students & her school! Angela started teaching Family & Consumer Sciences (Life Skills) about 5 years ago. Each year, I watch her push harder to ensure that students are learning many needed skills to thrive in life. I am amazed at the impact I observe first hand. Angela's first passion is to make sure EVERY student realize their potential to succeed. No matter if a student's background is wealthy, economically challenged, intelligent, struggles to learn in school, socially awkward, abused, forgotten, a star athlete...WHATEVER. Everyone has potential. She spends hours upon hours brainstorming ways to reach students on an individual level. I watch her do whatever it takes. We both share the same passion of making sure no child ever has to go hungry. I do what I can to help support her by working concessions, donating food, and working with her on her after school project: FACS Club. Her mantra this year? She wants to 'change the face of poverty'. She wants every student to find a path, no matter how hard it would be to climb, to be financially successful. Last year, she worked with students in creating a project called the Cougar Closet. It is a hand's on project for students to learn financial literacy. She has led students to create a 'store' inside her classroom. They started by bringing in new/gently used clothes (along with clothes from our own grown children). Students learned the value of clothes by researching costs. They laundered, ironed, hung these clothes. Students of the Middle School are invited in at any time to shop. They can take whatever they want - free of charge. But she took it a step further this year. Angela & some of her colleagues opened this store up to families on Parent Teacher Nights for ANYONE in the school community to shop for free. This school built store looks nicer than some retail stores. Students have learned how to arrange items and even built a store window. Students from all financial backgrounds use it with pride. Angela makes sure that no one sees that as a charity. She will be quick to correct you, if you do. She wants to the erase the spotlight on students of family struggling economically. I so admire her for this. She spends WEEKS teaching students that all families should be looking for ways to save money. Money needed for clothing that is not spent can be diverted to other wants/needs. I have heard her repeat this to students so many times. Money not spent on clothing can go for food, education, gas, Disney trips...whatever. I love and support this mission wholeheartedly. I am amazed at the success of it. I am writing this as she is still at school: teaching students how to make homemade apples pies to raise funds to buy senior citizens Christmas presents. She doesn't stop. While she is doing that, she has students working in the store. While that happens, she is also supervising students providing childcare for toddlers to get babysitting experience. While she is doing that, she is planning a trip for sports enthusiast to meet with professionals within the sports industry. I asked her WHY she was starting yet another project. She doesn't see it that way. She sees it all as one. Her passion to make sure every student knows they have a purpose in life requires many nights like this for her. She is a beacon to students that struggle within the school. Just the other night when I went up to help her clean her room, I heard her tell a student that her mission was not to get the student in trouble for a poor choice. She told the student that her job was to help the student make it right so they could get back on track. These kids love her. Just not as much as I do. I am lucky to be on this journey with her. I have purpose supporting my wife, Angela Allen. She is MY life changer.