Leisha Andrepoint chose ‘geaux teach’ path and hasn’t looked back
Published 9:57 am Thursday, November 3, 2022
- Leisha Andrepoint is the gifted itinerant teacher at Lake Charles-Boston Academy of Learning. (Special to the American Press)
She then moved to Vinton Middle School in August 2013 and remained there until May 2016. While at Vinton Middle, she taught 6th grade math for one year and 8th grade math for 2 years.
After 3 ½ years of teaching math, Andrepoint became a gifted itinerant teacher at Lake Charles-Boston. There she taught gifted 9th grade geometry, gifted 10th grade algebra 2 and gifted 11th grade PreCalculus. During this time, she began teaching gifted 8th grade Algebra 1 at S.J. Welsh.
Currently, she still teaches at S.J. Welsh and as a gifted itinerant teacher. However, her work with LC-B has been modified. “This year, the gifted teachers that were previously stationed at LC-B are now itinerant between the schools that we service,” she explained. “While teaching one group of students in person, we simultaneously stream to the students at the other schools.” The schools that are serviced are Westlake High School and Iowa High School.
These changes have made her schedule a bit chaotic. “I travel to Westlake High on Monday and Thursday morning and stream to the Iowa students. I travel to Iowa High on Tuesday and Friday mornings and stream to the Westlake students,” she said. On Wednesdays, she teaches her classes – 9th grade geometry and 10th grade algebra 2- via stream from S. J. Welsh.
Andrepoint did not dream of becoming a teacher when she was a child. Instead, she intended on being a veterinarian. However, after a high school project and an invitation from LSU, she decided to alter her plans. “After a project assigned by my English teacher in which I was to shadow someone in my future career, I decided that being a veterinarian was not the path for me,” she explained. “Before starting my first semester at LSU, I received a promotion postcard in the mail to try ‘Geaux Teach,’ which is the education program at LSU that allows students to receive two degrees in one: a bachelor’s degree and secondary teaching certificate.”
She decided she didn’t have anything to lose. “They promised a full refund for the course if I did not like it. After just a few weeks, I was all in!”
She graduated from LSU with her Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics with a concentration in Secondary Education in December of 2012. She went on to earn his Master’s in Special Education with a concentration in gifted education from Northwestern State University in December of 2020.
She stated that she has come to enjoy witnessing the growth in her students. She explained that seeing their potential fills her with determination. “I feel a strong responsibility to my students to prepare them for the next year of math and to help them build skills that will help them be successful in future classes and in adulthood,” she said.
She believes that it is paramount for educators to build positive relationships with their students to ensure they are able to maximize their learning. “I hold my students to high expectations, but I am there for them every step of the way,” she said. “When learning is tough, I try to walk alongside my students to help in any way that I can. I strive for each student to be successful, even through the struggles.”
Andrepoint’s students help her through her struggles as well. “When I am having a tough day, my students always seem to make me laugh or brighten my day,” she explained. “My students also challenge me to continue growing and finding new ways to teach them.”
For Andrepoint, it is all about an even exchange of effort. “I ask my students to give me their best, so I want to give them my best each day.”
She believes that a well-educated population is the foundation of a functional society. “Education helps our students become productive citizens in the community,” she said. “Students learn responsibility, time management and a strong work ethic, which, in turn, leads to hard-working adults in our community.”
In her free time, she enjoys riding horses in DeRidder. “It is a relaxing activity that allows me to spend time in nature and get a breath of fresh air,” she said. She also spends much of her time with family, especially her husband and one-year-old daughter.
