Mrs. Kimberly McCarthy has been a teacher at Mother of Divine Grace school for 14 years. Students have been and continue to be blessed to have her as their teacher and I know from first hand experience how good of a teacher she is, and how enjoyable learning from her can be!
Recently I had the pleasure of being able to interview her via email and learn about her experience not only as a teacher but also as a photographer. Onto the interview!
How long have you been a teacher for? I started teaching for Mother of Divine Grace in 2012, after my daughters had graduated from MODG. What do you like most about being a teacher? Students are the reason I teach. I enjoy high school students. Their enthusiasm and wonder is so refreshing. Did you always want to be a teacher? I did not think about being a teacher until we started homeschooling when our youngest was in 8th grade. Before that, our daughters attended brick and mortar school. I left teaching to the school teachers. It was not until I began homeschooling and teaching my daughters, that I realized how important homeschooling is, and how Mother of Divine Grace School supports parents as the teachers, providing learning support in most subjects. I enjoyed teaching my own daughters, and seeing how the MODG teachers supported my efforts as a mom, so then I wanted to give back, and become a MODG teacher helping families homeschool.
What made you want to be a journalism teacher? I asked a MODG administrator if the school had thought of offering a journalism class ever back in 2015, I think. She answered that they had talked about it, and she asked if I would be interested in designing the class. I said yes! What other subjects do you teach outside of Journalism? I teach Learning Support classes for World History and Literature, Earth Science and British Literature Book Club. Also, in Teacher Services, I teach high school religion and Natural Science in addition to the other subjects I mentioned.
Did you go to school for photography or journalism? Yes, I attended my state school’s journalism program – the University of Missouri School of Journalism. I studied Broadcast Journalism. Broadcast Journalism was television and radio then, and now it includes the Internet of course. How long have you been a photographer for? My father was an artist and photographer. So since childhood I saw my father taking polaroid images. Then in college I majored in journalism, and photography was part of the program- both still photography and video.
What was your favorite thing about having a photography business? My favorite thing about having a photography business, or specifically a children’s portraiture business, was getting to work with families. The parents were so appreciative of the time I spent taking portraits of their sweet children.
What type of photography do you do the most? My favorite is black and white still photography. My favorite camera to use is a Hasselblad. That is a camera with a large negative. The model that I have is a film camera with negatives.
Do you still continue to do photography? Yes, everyday, thanks to my I-phone. I am always seeing images everywhere to record. After being a photographer for a while, you begin to see scenes as cropped images. I also sketch and paint, so I find that my photos are already framed in a way that I can paint or sketch them.
What is your favorite Saint? Now that is a difficult question! I will make it easy on myself and choose my wonderful saint for the year, St. Joseph. In January each year, my weekly rosary group has a bowl full of saints’ names on little pieces of paper. We say a Hail Mary before choosing, and then, without looking, we reach into the bowl and select a piece of paper, and a saint for the year! Tonight, January 28, we will choose a new saint, or as we like to say, the saint chooses us. St. Joseph, pray for us!
