While the new school year has unfolded many students may have noticed that there have been some new faces in the classrooms.

Getting to know these new faces is important for students because it allows them to create bonds. Marie Times is one of the new English teachers.

Times is from Ewa Beach and attended Hawaii Baptist Academy during high school. As a child, she had many career options in mind.

“When I was a child I wanted to be a Veterinarian, then I wanted to be a lawyer, and then finally I wanted to be a journalist. I had no plans to become a teacher,” she said.

Times attended Georgia State University for undergrad where she majored in Journalism. Later on, she switched to Boston University which has a 14.4 percent acceptance rate. At Boston, she earned her masters degree and studied curriculum and teaching.

Going off to college came with a lot of struggles and self development.

Her biggest struggle during college was not having a long-term support system because she had moved so far away. “I focused on the depth of connection more than the time. So really working to form deep bonds with people even though we hadn’t known each other that long,” she expressed. Since Radford has such a condensed population of military kids, this is something many students can relate to and learn from.

To wrap it up, Times was asked what advice she has for students here at Radford. She said, “Remember that learning is the goal, prioritize growth and learning in the classroom and all areas of your life”. Students should take her words of encouragement, and see that Times is someone they can put their trust in for their success.