Welcome to our inaugural "Spotlight Podcast," where we will get to meet some of the inspiring teachers, staff members, students and those behind the scenes who make West Catholic High School a special place.

On this episode we feature teacher Carolyn Hathaway, the head of our English Deartment, as well as psycology teacher. She has been at West Catholic High School for 12 years.

Host John Gonzalez interviews Mrs. Hathaway about a variety of topics, including why she loves teaching, why she loves West Catholic High School and why she calls herself a "Word Nerd and Jesus Freak.

Here is some of biography information she provided.

WC Spotlight - Carolyn Hathaway

Hometown: Apex, North CarolinaSubjects: English, Psychology & AP Psychology
How many years at WC: 12 years
Favorite food: Butternut squash soup.
Favorite thing to teach, and why: Psychological terminology, because it applies to everyone.
You might not know: She has been hearing impaired since a child.

A few more things about me.....

"I grew up in a small town in North Carolina. When I was a little girl, I would set up all my dolls in chairs or on the floor and I would use my older sister’s grammar textbook to teach my dolls grammar. I read all the time… the dictionary, encyclopedia, any novel I could get my hands on. I consider myself a Word Nerd and a Jesus Freak. My dad was a devout Catholic, which at that time in the southern U.S., made us a bit of a minority. His quiet sharing of his faith life and prayer habits made an indelible impression on me, for which I am so grateful."

"My husband and I have 5 children, all of whom have been educated at West Catholic. Our youngest, Gianna, graduates this year. My career goal was always to be a wife and mother, and I loved being at home while our children were young. As they all began to get older, I returned to school at Aquinas to earn my Master’s degree in Education, as I had earned my bachelor's degrees in English and psychology before motherhood."

"I was working as a parapro at St. Thomas (an excellent school, by the way), and I had stopped in to Adoration for an hour at West Catholic. When I emerged from the chapel, Ms. Hoodhood flagged me down from the far end of the hall. She knew I had recently completed my studies in Education at Aquinas, and she had a long term substitute teaching position coming open in her department, which was English, of course. I was ecstatic to be considered for the position. From the first day, I loved everything about teaching at West Catholic."

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Our Mission: To form Disciples of Christ through a dynamic, excellence-driven Catholic Education. Learn more at grwestcatholic.org.