Senior year -- challenging but exhilarating, stressful but enjoyable, overwhelming but unbelievable. Senior year -- scary because of what the near future brings. Senior year --  the end to one journey, but also the start to a new one.
Last summer, I looked forward to but also dreaded my senior year. I knew senior year would bring applying to colleges, looking for scholarships, and making sure I had all the necessary credits to graduate. And I never thought a 5’9”, short haired lady who sits in the guidance office every day would be my hero.
But Mrs. Morrison is a mother, a mentor, and the guidance secretary at Arrowhead High School. Mrs. Morrison’s passion to help her students is like a study session you can get in 5 min or less. She doesn’t have just 100 or so kids like normal teachers, she is assigned to over 1,400 students and 100 staff members each year.
It’s always a good day when I have a reason to step foot in the guidance office, because that means I get to see Mrs. Morrison -- she is someone who brings me positive vibes on a gloomy day.
One day, I came in late to school. Walking through the guidance office in a frenzy, I was trying to get to class on time. But then Mrs. Morrison said, “Hello, Ms. Kayla. How are you today?” and she was able to turn a bad day into a good day.
As second semester approached, I looked over my class schedule and something occurred to me: I needed one more family and consumer education credit to graduate and I wasn’t signed up for a class in that category. So I started to worry. There was only a day left to add or drop classes. My mom tried calling my guidance counselor and I was in and out of the office all day.
Mrs. Morrison noticed how often I was in the guidance office and she asked if she could help. Since my guidance counselor wasn’t around, Mrs. Morrison went through the guidelines and sent me away worry-free. Turns out I was fine with all of my credits and she told me not to worry -- the guidance counselors spend the summer looking through everyone’s transcripts and making sure they are on track to graduate.
Just this past week, I was in the guidance office turning in a scholarship form. Mrs. Morrison was talking to a mother and her son about his application. I heard her say, “He needs to have this form filled out along with $5. You can bring it back to me later today, otherwise drop it off in the pile over there tomorrow. I will be going through all of the forms this week and getting transcripts pulled together.” I looked over at the pile she was pointing at and there were about 100 or more forms there for the scholarship and transcripts that Mrs. Morrison would be going through. Usually someone with that much work would be stressed out and frantic about completing it all, however, Mrs. Morrison was calm about it and it seemed as if she were more than happy to spend time doing the work for all the kids. She knew by doing this it would benefit each student greatly. 
Some people would assume, with how much effort and outside work Mrs. Morrison puts into her job, that she is single or married with no kids. However, two kids were lucky enough to have a mother who is as devoted to her job and family as she is. Mrs. Morrison has two kids--a son who is 32 and a daughter who is 29. For a long time, she juggled having a strenuous career and two kids all at the same time. Mrs. Morrison is like a superhero.  
Senior year -- not challenging because Mrs. Morrison invested time into you. Senior year -- not stressful because Mrs. Morrison stopped what she was doing to help you work through stuff.
I am nominating Mrs. Morrison as educator of the year because of everything she has done for students. Her time and dedication to her job and her students is miraculous. Mrs. Morrison is the type of teacher who kids feel comfortable going to, whether you have an issue with your schedule, need help with an application for college, or simply need a friend to talk to, Mrs. Morrison is on top of kid’s lists to go to. 
Senior year -- not overwhelming because Mrs. Morrison has patience to deal with stressed out kids.