Teaching is a calling and one First Lady Dr. Jill Biden found back in college. President Joe Biden’s wife, who is a professor at Northern Virginia Community College, opened up in Good Housekeeping ’s September 2021 issue about what inspired her to become a teacher. “In college, I started working with older students who struggled with reading. I’ve always loved to read, and I wanted to help them find that same joy that I found in books,” she shared. “It was then that I knew that I’d found my calling.”
The first lady noted that teaching is “more than a job.” She said, “The truth is, teaching in front of our classroom is just one part of the job. We spend hours at home grading papers or creating lesson plans. On top of all of that, we always carry our students with us. Whatever I’m doing, there’s always a part of me that’s thinking about my students, wondering how they are doing, or asking myself what more I can do to help them if they’re struggling.”
As for the most rewarding part about being a teacher? Dr. Biden answered, “There is nothing like helping students find their confidence and begin to use their voices, or seeing that spark light up in their eyes the moment a concept falls into place.”
The first lady continued, “Working with community college students is deeply rewarding. My students work incredibly hard to make it to class, often between work and raising families. They want to learn. They bring diverse perspectives to our studies – of travels and jobs and families and challenges they’ve had to overcome. It is such an honor to be the person to walk them through their studies, to give them the key that could unlock something life-changing.”
Ahead of the 2020 presidential election, Dr. Biden revealed that she planned on continuing to teach if her husband became president. In a CBS Sunday Morning interview, the community college educator said, “If we get to the White House, I’m going to continue to teach. It’s important, and I want people to value teachers and know their contributions and lift up the profession.”