First job as an educator: “I’ve been teaching for more than 20 years. I started out in Nottoway County, Virginia where I taught for about six years.”

Arrival in Nevada: “I’ve been here for about 15 years and I love Pahrump. I think Pahrump has a lot of potential. I’m not one of those people who has a negative attitude about Pahrump. When kids say ‘Mrs. Owen, what can you expect, I’m from Pahrump?’ I tell them that I expect a lot because Pahrump has a lot of good things for us. I really love the desert because we don’t have many snow days.”

Motivation for becoming an educator: “I think I was born to be an educator. I played school before I was old enough to attend school. I had a sister who was fours years younger than me and she was my student and I just thought I always knew I was going to be a teacher. I actually like my subject. I truly enjoy teaching math.”

Pearls of wisdom for students: “The good thing about public education is it prepares you to be anything you want to be. You may not use all of what you learn but it makes the playing field fair so everybody has a chance.”

Toughest challenges facing teachers: “The number of students in the classroom has increased, which means we have less time to give each individual student the attention that I would to be able to give. The student to teacher ratio in my class is more than 30 and it can be quite a challenge.”

Advice for individuals wanting to pursue a career in education: “You need to be willing to do a lot of hard work and put in lots of hours. You really have to enjoy working with the kids as well and the big reward is that you get to see kids educated. It’s a wonderful career.”

Leisure time: “I’m a pastor’s wife and that keeps me busy. I love cats and their antics. Right now, I have just one. I really enjoy doing crafts and curling up to read a good book. I also have two daughters and they are both grown. My older daughter lives in Augusta, Georgia and has three children. My younger daughter lives in New Jersey and she has two children.”