Today@Sam Article

Commencement Spotlight: Destiny Burton

May 13, 2022
SHSU Media Contact: Wes Hamilton

The Commencement Spotlight series highlights graduating Bearkats with a “can-do” spirit through challenges and service.

Destiny Burton          
Richardson, Texas
Bachelor of Science in Education with a certification in Early Childhood through sixth grade

Being a student comes with many obstacles, and those obstacles become especially hard to deal with during a pandemic. Destiny Burton, an education major, found it difficult for her to continue some of the field experience she needed to complete her degree.

“Although this year has been hard, and I have experienced many different things, the experiences have all molded me into the teacher I am today. I now know how to handle these various situations because I had the opportunity to deal with them during my placement,” Burton said.

Burton managed to push on while working as a teacher resident and emotionally dealing with imposter syndrome—feelings of self-doubt and personal incompetence.

“Those days were very hard, and I started feeling like I wasn’t doing enough,” Burton said. “But something my mentor always tells me is if I could do this year, I can do anything.”

Burton was able to find herself and the type of teacher she wants to be within the different organizations she participated in at SHSU. Burton was the president of College of Education Ambassador, co-president of Texas Association of Future Educators, member of Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society, TRiO SSS, Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, and Truth College Ministry.

“I made sure I gave 110 percent to each organization I was in,” Burton said. “What drove me were the people. I was within my element, and I was surrounded around people who had the same interests as me, and that made it all worth it.”

After Burton crosses the stage, she plans on working in Conroe Independent School District as a fifth-grade math teacher.

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