Sandy Husk
AVID
San Diego, CA USA
"If you aren’t having a lot of fun doing what you are doing, then you should probably be doing something else."
Career Roadmap
Sandy's work combines: Education, Non-Profit Organizations, and Teaching / Mentoring
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Focus on your goals and keep following them. Use your network to get ahead and tap into it for support.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Elementary Education and Teaching
University of Georgia
Graduate Degree
Counselor Education/School Counseling
University of Colorado, Boulder
Doctorate
Educational Leadership and Administration
University of Colorado, Denver
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
From the time I was in fourth grade, I knew I wanted to be a teacher.
2.
Attended the University of Georgia, where I earned my bachelor’s degree in elementary education.
3.
After graduating, I moved back to my mom’s house in the town I grew up in so that I could save money.
4.
Got my first job teaching, but had to commute an hour to and from work; at the same time, I also had a night job answering phones, but I’d use that time to grade papers and do lesson planning.
5.
I eventually saved enough money to attend the University of Colorado, where I earned my master’s degree in school counseling while working as a substitute teacher part-time.
6.
Started working as a principal and school counselor, which allowed me to work closely with students to find ways to help them succeed in school despite what’s going on in the rest of their lives.
7.
Went on to earn my doctorate in education administration from the University of Colorado and began working as a superintendent for school districts.
8.
I am now the CEO of AVID, a nonprofit global organization specializing in providing educators with skills and tools to engage students and improve academic performance.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Peers:
You aren't ready for this promotion.
How I responded:
There was one time where I was trying to get promoted to become a superintendent and my boss at the time was not very encouraging or supportive. I don't know if he was doing it on purpose, but he kept insinuating that I wasn't ready for that position. It was a challenge to keep my spirits up at the time. I ended up starting a women's empowerment group with a couple of friends and that helped me keep pushing forward.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
After graduating from college, I moved back to my moms house to save money for graduate school. I worked as a teacher during the day and I had a night job answering phones.
I went to school continuously from the time I was in kindergarten through until I received my doctorate. I had to learn how to juggle classes with work in order to pay for more schooling and it was a struggle to maintain a social life.
Being an educator is very challenging. You always try to make a big impact on your students, but you never really know if you are and you always wonder if there's more you can be doing.