MOVING FORWARD
Jessica Jaye aspires to shape the future of education
Jaye received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from ECU. (Contributed photo)
Jessica Jaye wants to effect change as an educational leader.
Jaye, who will graduate this fall with her Master of Arts in education in middle grades education with a concentration in social studies, has aspirations for her future.
“I want to be part of the change to help make our educational system a better system for our students, our teachers and everybody involved,” she said. “There’s a lot of things that I’ve already brought to my school that are different, like different ways of thinking or looking at things or delivering instruction.”
As a first-generation college student, Jaye knows the value of education and how finding balance in your life is critical to success.
“I’ve learned, especially in my master’s program, that it’s OK to ask for help and it’s OK if things don’t go perfectly as planned,” she said.
She said that although it was very challenging to be the first in her family with a college degree, she feels very proud of what she’s accomplished. While in college, Jaye learned about the cycle of poverty, which can prevent students from applying for or attending universities.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to even go to college to figure that out,” Jaye said. “Also, to just be able to move my family forward, even if it’s just an inch.”
Finding support was also crucial for Jaye.
“I didn’t really consider getting my master’s right away because I didn’t think that was something attainable for me,” she said. “I remember messaging one of my professors who wrote me a really amazing recommendation and I had a lot of support from them to pursue it.”
Jaye is also a member of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin sorority and credited the group with helping her as well.
“My sorority sisters, especially some of the older alumni sisters, they mentored me because I didn’t know a lot of things and considering they have bachelor’s degrees and some of them have master’s and doctoral degrees, they were able to assist me with the process and make it not feel as overwhelming.”
Jaye began teaching this fall and plans to teach for a few years before her long-term goal of getting a doctoral degree and becoming a professor.