Kim Breen

Taking over for the retired Carole Babineaux as yearbook and photojournalism teacher, Kim Breen worked as a journalist for 20 years before deciding it was time for her to start a new career. Growing up, she always wanted to be a teacher, and photojournalism was perfect for her because of her journalism experience and degree.

Wingspan: Which college did you go to and what did you major in?

Breen: “I went to St. Michael’s College. It’s a small school in Vermont. I had a double major in Political Science and Journalism.”

Wingspan: Why did you become a teacher and or have you always wanted to be one?

Breen: “I wanted to be a teacher when I was little, but then after I went to college, I decided to be a journalist because I also like to write. So I was  journalist for 20 years and then I decided that this is a good time for me to pursue a second career, which I knew would be teaching.”

Wingspan: Why a photojournalism teacher?

Breen: “I’m certified in journalism and so yeah I enjoy photography and I love the idea of working with the yearbook kids. So it’s a photojournalism slash yearbook.”

Wingspan: How has it been at this campus so far? Has it been difficult settling is or easy?

Breen: “I think any new job comes with challenges, but it’s been great. Everybody’s been super helpful and the kids have been great and I’m loving it so far.”

Wingspan: In your opinion, what is the biggest challenges that teachers face today?

Breen: “Just having enough time to get everything done. You know their is just a lot of time constraints and there is just a lot to do and not a lot of time which I’ve learned, switching careers, it’s been a big eye opener.”

Wingspan: What part of this job are you looking forward to?

Breen: “I’m looking forward to watching kids grow their skills in photography and then watching the journalism or the yearbook kids integrate yearbook at the end of the year.”

Wingspan: If someone were to walk into your classroom on a typical day, what would they see going on?

Breen: “Right now we’re doing a lot of talking about photojournalism and looking at pictures and why they’re effective and how to make good pictures. But soon I hope you’ll see when you come into the classroom, everybody with a camera working on a project. Working on photography.”

Wingspan: What do you like to do when you’re not teaching?

Breen: “I have two kids and a husband. And so we like to go to soccer games and stuff for the kids a lot. I like to read, I like to go to the movies. I love Disney World, so we try to go there every year.”

Wingspan: What were you like as a student?

Breen: “As a high school student I know I would always come to school really late. I was always never very  good at waking up on time. Or i’d get to school on time with my hair be frozen solid because I grew up in Connecticut and I’d be driving to school at the last minute. But I always had I had pretty good grades in high school. I’d say I was a pretty conscientious student. I loved to write in high school.”

Wingspan: You said that you’ve always wanted to become a teacher, did someone influence you?

Breen: “I have had a lot of great teachers over the years, both in school and then in my profession. And so I think just so many different teachers who weren’t necessarily teachers you know like they aren’t going out in a teaching profession but when you’re in the real world people teach you everything all the time. Well when you’re in school people who aren’t teachers teach you things all the time, life lessons. So I’ve had so many people have helped me so much and so I feel like this is a way for me to give back a little bit of what I’ve gotten.”

Wingspan: If there is any grade or age that you would not want to teach, which would it be?

Breen: “I don’t know enough about it. I’m not sure,I think it would be fun working with little kids. I mean my kids are 8 and 10 and so I always thought, I always love babies and preschool or so, I dont know I’m not sure.”

Wingspan: Would you describe yourself as a “tough” teacher or an “understanding” teacher? Explain.

Breen: “I think that I’m an understanding teacher. I think in photojournalism if you show me that you’ve done some work then I think you’ll be fine.”

Wingspan: What would you do if a student was complaining about an assignment you’ve given?

Breen: “Well I’d try not to waste class time having a debate over specific assignments but I think pretty much everything I assign has a reason so I think I’d have a you know, pretty concise answer to tell them why we’re doing what we’re doing. But if it’s just a debate, it would just be difficult, it would be an after class discussion.”