Congratulations to Mrs. Necia Jenkins, a first-grade teacher at Providence Elementary School, who has been selected as an HCS Changemaker!
Mrs. Jenkins knew that she wanted to be a teacher since she was eight years old due largely to the positive impact and inspiration she received from her own second-grade teacher, Ms. Ratcliff. She says that her former teacher would always greet them with a smile and a warm hug, and their classroom was always active and inviting. She’s worked hard to carry that same positivity and energy into her own classroom.
“Mrs. Jenkins is fantastic,” says Providence Fourth-Grade Teacher DeMeacus Ray, “she brings an energy to the classroom unlike any other.” He adds that she is always highly interactive, engaging, and just loves to put a smile on everyone’s face.
Her classroom reflects these qualities, with students shifting between whole and small group instruction as well as lots of activities that get them up and moving about the room. In one assignment students might draw a picture to illustrate cause and effect, while in another they might act out verbs by dancing or singing.
When she isn’t working with students, Mrs. Jenkins might be found reading, roller-skating, or dancing, but she says her favorite hobby is being a DJ. She got her start during the pandemic by DJing over Zoom calls, but now she often gets people dancing and moving at birthday parties - including as a bit of a surprise for a former student at one such party. One of her two children is currently a senior at Huntsville High School and plays both baseball and football, so she spends a lot of time cheering at the games as well.
She is also very active in her church and teaches Sunday school, adding that “I just can’t get enough of working with kids.”
Mrs. Jenkins hopes to be for her students what Ms. Ratcliff was for her. She wants students to know that they are important and that they have a voice. “I want them to look back and say that I gave them an opportunity to become a great learner, a principled student, and someone who is kind and works hard,” she says. After 21 years committed to her craft, one can imagine that a great many students are already looking back and saying just that.