Esteemed English Teacher Retires From Teaching At Blake

As the school year is coming to an end, we start to say our goodbyes to those who have been with us since the beginning of the year. One of these people is our beloved English teacher Amy Branson. This will be Mrs. Branson’s last year working at Blake. 

Mrs. Branson has been teaching since the 80s. She was determined to share her love for literature with her students. Unlike other teachers, whenever you were in Mrs. Branson’s class, there was never a dull moment. Even though we were taught virtually this year, there was always communication happening. “I’m going to miss engaging conversations,” Mrs. Branson says. 

Communication is vital in Mrs. Branson’s classrooms. “Once you create a sense of community and once they buy into [knowing] like this is my little world when I come into Mrs. B’s room, then [teaching] is a lot easier,” Mrs. Branson says. 

Mrs. Branson was able to create great relationships with students and staff. “I just learned so much from them and that was the easiest part of [teaching].” she says. 

Sylvia Kim worked in the English department alongside Mrs. Branson. She is going to miss Mrs. Branson’s big heart. “Mrs. Branson was one of the first teachers I got close to when I came to Blake 7 years ago, and she’s taught me and encouraged me so much. She has made me a better teacher and a better person,” Mrs. Kim says.

Mrs. Branson’s loving attitude didn’t extend out to just the teachers, but to the students as well. 

Sophomore Briana LaSanta enjoyed having Mrs. Branson as her teacher. “When Mrs. Branson was my teacher last semester, let’s just say she was my favorite teacher,” she says. “She still tried to be fun despite us doing the whole virtual learning, and that’s what I loved about her. She always tried to make sure that we knew our opinions mattered.” 

Many people at Blake are going to miss seeing Mrs. Branson in the building. We are going to miss her ever-so nerve racking community builders and her random check-ups. Whenever she was talking to you, she always gave off a laid back vibe. She was a comfortable person to be around and her lessons were empowering and insightful. 

I and many others can testify that we became better writers all due to her class. “Mrs. Branson helped expand my creativity in English class and I will always carry that with me,” LaSanta says.

Though we won’t be seeing much of Mrs. Branson in the building anymore, you can catch her doing yoga, finishing up a few of her books, or even hiking through Europe. But she certainly won’t be answering any more school emails.

To put it into Mrs. Branson’s words, one exit is another beginning and she is just exiting an experience in her life: “When you leave a door, you are leaving someplace to go someplace else. And I just have some other places I want to go [to].”