Check Out Taylor Steward’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Taylor Steward.  

Hi Taylor, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I always loved to teach and to play teaching games as a child. Of course, when my sister and I would play, I would always be the teacher. I did not realize this was my calling until my junior year of high school. I was looking for a filler class to take because I was unable to take the Veterinary Medicine Skills Center course, which was my original major of choice. I decided that the Teacher Education course sounded fun and would give me beneficial skills. It was there that I found teaching was my absolute passion! It turns out even my close family knew this was my chosen path before I did. After high school in 2015, I went to the University of Michigan-Flint to obtain my degree in Elementary Education with an Early Childhood Endorsement. While working toward my degree, I worked at Grand Blanc Academy (GBA). I attended GBA when I was young. I started off as a lunch aide and eventually became a Special Education Paraprofessional. I gained many skills working with students of different backgrounds and with different abilities. I was then able to complete my Student Teaching in a first-grade classroom with a wonderful mentor. I graduated April of 2021 with Honors and was a recipient of the Maize and Blue Distinguished Scholar Award. I was then very fortunate to be hired by Grand Blanc Academy for the 2021-2022 school year as a 4th-grade teacher. I will be teaching 4th grade there again for the 2022-2023 school year. 

I also have a side hustle as a SeneGence Distributor. My personal business is called “eternally radiant,” and I sell things from long-lasting makeup to skincare to men’s products and more! 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The path to becoming an educator was definitely bumpy. I had many people telling me that it would be a career I would regret or even give up in the future. I had a lot of opposition even from family and teachers but found that I needed to follow what I know I love. The pandemic really made things difficult. I was still working toward my degree when everything shut down March of 2020. I suddenly had to do alternative assignments instead of observations, and similarly to other educator experiences in 2020; I did not get to see students I had been working with all year. I started off Student Teaching virtually, which any educator would tell you is not ideal. Then we went to hybrid teaching for the rest of the 2020-2021 school year. We started the 2021-2022 school year, my first year as a certified teacher, with many restrictions that students and teachers needed to adjust to. Last school year was difficult in many ways, but I can still say I absolutely LOVED my class and LOVE my job! Additionally, being a young educator is difficult. Many people have a tendency to discount things that I have to say or just assume I lack qualified teaching abilities due to the fact I am young. This just pushes me to work harder not only for myself but for my students as well. 

In reference to my eternally radiant business, I have dealt with very few challenges. It is always scary starting a new venture, but I have a team of wonderful women that rely on each other to answer questions and for support. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Teaching changes day by day, hour by hour, and even minute by minute. It is a very stimulating job, and I work hard to make sure my students are given as many educational opportunities as I can provide. Creating lesson plans is a lot more complex than most people realize. Teachers need to teach according to their state standards. In my case, the Michigan State Standards. I am given a curriculum, which is just part of what I teach. I like to refer to that as the bones. The meat of a lesson is the things I do to enrich the lesson such as: making it interesting for the class, allowing students of different learning abilities to comprehend and learn from the lesson, providing special education services, and making sure the lessons provide knowledge required by the state standards. It is so important for teachers to build positive relationships with students so that students feel comfortable enough to learn and, at times, confide in them. One of the most important things I do to build positive relationships with my class is I tell them that the classroom is “our classroom,” not just mine. This worked wonderfully and allowed my students to feel comfortable and safe. They respected my property and kept things very neat and organized in the classroom. In my school, I am known as the teacher that brings in dogs. I have certified therapy dogs come into my room to visit and to provide reading support to students. My dog, Mollie (a Border Collie/Jack Russell mix), and my mom’s dog, Mia (a Great Pyrenees), would visit my classroom regularly. This became a favored classroom activity by students and staff. I am very proud that, as a first-year teacher, I was a winner of a grant for classroom supplies. My boss actually was the person that nominated me, and it allows me to know that I am doing a good job in her eyes. All in all, I hope I am making a difference in my students’ lives. 

As a SeneGence Distributor, I work to make people feel good and empower them to enhance their natural beauty. I do parties for individuals that would like to earn free products, face-to-face and through social media. I work with other women in the business to help each other and build on each other’s ideas. I am most proud of the fact that I run this business along with my full-time job as a teacher. This side hustle helps me get money for self-care and fun, as well as things for my classroom. Selling just a couple of items helps me purchase books and other necessities for my class. 

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
Our educational system changes all the time. My hope is that things move in a positive direction for the good of the youth of the United States. Providing students with educational opportunities that challenge them through qualified individuals is important to continually move the education system in a positive direction. 

As for my eternally radiant business, my hope is for more people to learn about how absolutely amazing these products are! The products were even used for the Miss USA Pageant! I also want people to learn about how great it is to have this business as their side hustle or even their main source of income. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://eternally-radiant.weeblysite.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eternallyradiant/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/338723747026553/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/eternallyradia1
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSF-ar3BKTV03gE_e-qGmdg
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@taylorsteward1997?lang=en

Image Credits
Savannah Rae Photography LLC