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Kat Lawrence
A Teacher in the Making BY JENNIFER HOWE
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manda Mills has dreamed about being a teacher since she was a little girl. However, she didn’t know she wanted to work in special education until she was 13, when her nephew was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. She witnessed how efforts by an applied behavior analyst therapist changed his life. “He had communication skills we thought he might never have, and my sister had the tools to help her son thrive,” said Mills. “I knew then that I wanted to work in the field of special education. I have a passion for helping others, and I love kids.” 66 UNC CHARLOTTE magazine
| Fall 2020
Mills selected UNC Charlotte because of the outstanding academic reputation of the special education program offered through the Cato College of Education. “I was excited to go to a university that I believed would set me up for success as a future teacher,” she said. It also helped that her older sister had graduated from UNC Charlotte and was beginning her graduate program. “It was fun commuting together and meeting up on campus during our breaks,” she said. Shortly after beginning her UNC Charlotte studies, Mills learned she was pregnant. She questioned being able to afford school and support her son on a single income.
