Being a teacher is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Despite the challenging schedule and limited funding for teacher compensation, education is a passion for many. Samantha Ebert, teacher at Munster High School, is one of these educators.
Born and raised in Tipp City, Ohio, Ebert did not plan on being an educator. She found academic achievement through hard work and especially loved science despite it being a more difficult subject. Ebert went on to Ohio State University and earned a degree in biology. She started working in medicine but soon found that it simply was not the field for her.
“I initially had aspirations for doing medicine of some sort because that’s what the smart kid did at my tiny little high school,” said Ebert. “I worked at the Ohio State Medical Center and I enjoyed working there most days, but some were just awful. I realized that if you want to work in that field and go as far as you’re supposed to in order to be a doctor, that you really had to burn for it, and I just didn’t find myself loving it enough to keep pushing through medical school and residency.”
Recognizing that medicine, while interesting, simply was not her career passion, Ebert looked back on her high school experiences. She felt that because of her small school she had not gotten quite enough out of the experience, and she also recalled how much time she spent tutoring other students. Ebert realized that she enjoyed and had a talent for explaining things, so she started to dip her toes into teaching.
“I really enjoy teaching people things, and I seem to do it without much training or thought,” she explained. “I went and shadowed my former high school teacher and my husband’s former science teacher, and I just knew as soon as I sat there that this is my talent, this is what I’m supposed to do.”
Ebert moved to the Region with her husband in January of 2013, and found herself as a substitute for a teacher on maternity leave at Munster High School. With a bit of luck, circumstance, and perseverance, she landed a permanent position at the school. Now she teaches an array of science classes, with a focus on biology, and loves working with the kids at Munster.
“My favorite part has to be the kids,” she said. “I know that every teacher would probably say that, but Munster has a really unique culture with unique kids who just want to be there. They want to try and want to learn.”
With what free time she has, Ebert also tutors some of her former students. Teaching is not just a job for her, it is her passion.
“Education is the core of my personality,” said Ebert. “It keeps me going when the days get really hard. When you want it that badly, you just pour everything you have into it to the point where at the end of the day you might feel like you’ve been beat with a stick. There’s only one kind of person who goes back to that because, for whatever reason, they’re drawn to it and it’s a part of them.”
Even though her life outside of her husband and young son centers around teaching, Ebert is happy to be doing something she loves.
“My students would tell me ‘I can tell you really burn for teaching’ and I would say, well yeah, but my co-workers do, too,” she said. “But the more I think about it the more I realize I really do just live for teaching, that’s all I do, but I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything. I get to do everything I want to do by doing my job, so I guess I’m way more of a nerd than I thought I was!”
Though she is somewhat new to the Region and her first months here provided some culture shock, Ebert quickly found a lot to love in Northwest Indiana.
“You wouldn’t expect culture shock coming from Ohio, but there’s a lot of differences,” said Ebert. “Where I come from, everything is pretty commercial, and there weren’t little restaurants called the Riviera or localized chains. And I loved that when you go into some of them it’s like going back to the 90s!”
Teachers like Ebert are essential. Their passion for education keeps kids all around the Region motivated, invested in learning, and gives them a strong foundation for their future.