From aspiring to be a music teacher, to interning in hospitality management at Eat ‘n Park, to working as a non-profit development worker for various institutions; Ms. Beckwith has done it all. A graduate of Moon High School, Ms. Beckwith earned her Bachelor’s degree in business administration from Robert Morris University with a field study in hospitality management. Here at Freedom, she can be found teaching the Senior Seminar classes on white days, as well as subbing for various other classes throughout the school. Before coming to Freedom, Ms. Beckwith had a variety of work experiences. Early on, she was an intern at Eat ‘n Park, studying all aspects of hospitality management within the restaurant, from the cook to the server. “I thought I would go [down] that pathway in life,” she said. “Then I decided to immediately return to Robert Morris and get my Master’s degree in structural leadership, which is teaching at the college level.” Though she was offered a teaching position as a professor at RMU, she turned it down. However, after starting her family and working in the non-profit development world for some time, she decided to return to RMU. “It was at that point I decided that my original passion was teaching, which took me all the way back 10 years to why I went to Robert Morris in the first place,” she said. Ms. Beckwith transferred from Slippery Rock, where she was studying music education, back to RMU and completed the coursework necessary for her teacher’s certification. “Way back when I graduated from high school, I thought I was going to be a music teacher,” said Ms. Beckwith, a former trombonist. “Then so many years later I’m back and I realize that teaching really was my passion, just what I wanted to teach has changed.” Now, after the many paths she has taken, she finds herself here at Freedom, known most for working with the seniors in the newly-added Senior Seminar course. “[The class] has a lot of interesting things that need to be accomplished in the year; everybody has different needs and different wants, and everybody has different paths,” she said. “It’s my job to figure out how to get everybody excited about it.” Due to the fact that this is the first year for the class, Ms. Beckwith hopes that seniors will give feedback to make the program more suitable to their individual needs and interests. “I’m listening to the students, because I want to make this a good experience for them; I don’t want it to just be considered a requirement that they have to get through,” she said. “I want to bring some fun into the environment, and I want to give them skills that they need when they graduate.” Ms. Beckwith brings a different perspective to the course, which includes cooking, due to the fact that she was a strict vegan for five years. “I was a vegetarian for around eight years, and vegan for five of that; so I come to the foods class with a different thought on nutrition because of different paths that I’ve taken,” she said. Though she is not currently vegan, she was for years. Outside of teaching, Ms. Beckwith volunteers and stays active in the community. She and her two daughters, ages 9 and 6, also sing for her church.