Charlotte Dobson
Charlotte Dobson always knew she wanted to go to university to become a teacher. But first there were financial and geographic barriers, then the responsibilities of a young family; it seemed life had other plans.
Today, as the mother of two middle school-aged children, Dobson is thriving in her fourth year of a 5-year Bachelor of Education/Bachelor of Arts integrated program at UWinnipeg’s Winnipeg Education Centre (WEC). She is also the “pleasantly shocked” winner of a GEICO Life Scholarship worth $1,000, awarded to undergraduate members of the Golden Key International Honour Society who “achieve academic excellence while balancing additional personal commitments.”
While her dream to become a teacher had to be put on hold when her children were young, Dobson did earn years of experience in the school system working as an educational assistant. She says her employers sensed her aptitude and always encouraged her to pursue teaching, but in the end it was a stressful period in her personal life that inspired her to pursue further education.
“I thought, ‘this is what I want to do,’” says Dobson, who will be the first person in her family to graduate with a university degree. “And even if I only work in it for 15, 20 years after I graduate, that’s okay. This is what I want to do, this is what I was meant to do with my life.”
Dobson has the kind of warm personality every child should experience from a teacher, and is dedicated to student life: in additional to Golden Key, she has served as the coordinator of the UWSA’s part-time and mature students’ group, organizing social events, and tutors students in UWinnipeg’s Access Education Program . She is also passionate about her chosen field.
“The bottom line is, everybody deserves a chance at education,” she says. “And I really feel I have a natural gift in that area — leadership and connecting with kids, relationships, and bringing the creative aspect back to the classroom. I can help with that.”
