For AmeriCorps week, we will be hearing from some of our Alumni about their experiences with AmeriCorps. Hunter Good served with Alpine Achievers Initiative from 2015-2016, and currently teaches at the school where he served! Read this Good story below.
By Hunter Good
I moved from Georgia, straight out of college, with a degree in Outdoor Leadership. I had zero knowledge of AmeriCorps, but I liked the job description. I had always wanted to live in the Rocky Mountains and I love kids. It was perfect. Little did I know it would be the start to a complete career overhaul and a new outlook on life.
I began my time in AAI as the Outdoor Leadership Coordinator, helping build this program in the very baby steps of Alpine Achievers. I realized very early the joys of a classroom setting and the world of education. This was shocking for me, considering my background in outdoor education. As the service term moved along, I was growing increasingly interested in pursuing Education. I discovered a Master’s degree program through the Boettcher Teacher Residency and Adams State University that would require me to continue working in the San Luis Valley. I spoke with the administration at Mountain Valley School and explained to them that while I felt that my time in AAI was over, I did not feel that my role in the district was finished and that I wanted to pursue this degree as a student teacher. They accepted me back with open arms as a paraprofessional while I completed my student teaching. The following year, I was MVS’s elementary interventionist and P.E. teacher and received my Master’s in Education. I currently have the role of the combined 2nd and 3rd grade teacher.
Alpine Achievers Initiative provided me with an opportunity to give a year of my life to service in a town that I never thought I would choose otherwise. Saguache is a tiny little place with many families in need. I am faced with the hardships of our students daily. Somehow, I am compelled to stay. I am surrounded by fellow educational professionals that have equal drive for this area. I am also surrounded by some of the most endearing wilderness and public land that this state holds. I always figured my AmeriCorps year in Saguache would be a good segway into my adult life in Colorado, but I never imagined I would be inspired to change my career goals and stay in this small town for as long as I have.
Stay tuned the rest of the week as we continue to celebrate AmeriCorps week with more stories. Read here about how Alpine Achievers Initiative incorporates AmeriCorps Members into our programs.
