Molly Callaghan is returning to Westford Academy as a ninth grade English teacher after working at the high school on and off for four years between 2021 and 2025. According to Callaghan, she hopes to encourage her students and to shape their high school journey in a positive way as her high school teachers once did for her.
Q: How long have you been teaching?
A: I started teaching in the mid ’90s and substituting in 1992 after I graduated from college. [Then, I] started teaching full time around 1995 and then stopped in 2006 when I had my daughter. I got back into teaching when my daughter was in ninth grade. So I’ve been at WA now, off and on, teaching and subbing for about four years since about 2021.
Q: What inspired you to start teaching?
A: I fell into it accidentally when I graduated from college [and] I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I graduated with a degree in English, and one of my friends said, “Hey, substitute at school while you look for a ‘real job.'” So I said, ‘Okay,’ and ended up substituting at the high school where I went, and ended up liking it, which is a surprise. I mean, who treats substitutes well? So, I went back to school, took a couple years to get my certification in Virginia, and then started teaching.
Q: What other careers did you consider or pursue, and how did they compare to teaching?
A: I have only ever taught, although after a few years of teaching, I considered joining the Air Force [and] going through their officer candidate program. I even put a package together. My dad was in the Air Force, and when I submitted [the application] and I wasn’t picked up for officer candidate school, I thought, “Okay, I guess this wasn’t meant to be.” What I found out later is you have to submit your application two or three times to be picked up. I kind of felt like fate stepped in and said, “No, [teaching] is really what you need to do.” So, I ended up teaching for several years before I had children; I taught in Virginia, Oregon, and I substituted in Maryland. I would say, while I’ve always been teaching, I definitely see a difference in the different states I’ve been in; Massachusetts has one of the best curriculums and WA in particular has the best staff I have ever worked with.
Q: What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
A: Well, I guess I should say I like reading because I’m an English teacher, but I really do enjoy reading – usually murder mysteries – and I like to try and figure out the end before I get there. I like walking [and] traveling. I go to England quite often in the summertime and I like sewing and embroidery, so I have a huge machine [at home] where I can embroider things, and I like to make clothes and gifts for people.
Q: What do you like or dislike about teaching high schoolers?
A: I don’t think there’s anything I dislike […] there might be a few things that I could possibly touch on, but I love the energy that students bring. I feel like that kind of keeps me young and that regardless of what people say about teenagers, you are excited to learn and I feed off of that too. I enjoy coming here, meeting with new people, getting to know children, [and] knowing that I’m helping to shape minds and habits. It is immensely fulfilling for me every single day, I don’t know that everybody gets to say that about their jobs. I don’t think there’s anything that I don’t like about it, other than that I don’t love the rotating schedule, that throws me off every single day, and now the new times? I’m all over the place. I’d say that’s the one thing I don’t like.
Q: What is your favorite book, and why?
A: To Kill a Mockingbird. It is not one that I read growing up. I didn’t really get to know To Kill a Mockingbird until I started teaching it. I used to teach 10th grade, and I have read and taught that book probably 100 times and I always notice something new. I love the character of Scout. I’ve named pets after characters from To Kill a Mockingbird. So it’s something that, even though it was written in the 1960s and set almost 100 years ago, still has many messages we could take away from it.
Q: What was your favorite subject in school?
A: English. I typically did well in English [and] I liked English. I also liked history and I remember when I was trying to pick a major in college I mentioned history and my dad said, “Oh, no, don’t major in history, the only thing you can do is teach.” Well, there’s the irony because I became a teacher anyway. So, English first, history second, and psychology was probably my third favorite.
Q: How did your school experience shape your interests?
A: As a student, I had a handful of amazing English teachers and I think that’s maybe what made me interested in English. I would say my 10th grade teacher in particular really sparked an interest in […] not reading just to gain information, [but also] reading to enjoy things and to have classroom discussions. Then I had an AP English teacher in 12th grade who built on that, and then [I had an] experience with my English professors in college, [which] lit a fire in me; I love to read, I love to talk, I love to parse out what’s happening in a book, what’s happening with characters, and I guess I didn’t really see the forest for the trees. I should have realized back then that what I wanted to do was teach so that I could help young people do the same thing that the English teachers did for me.
Q: Do you like movies or books better, and why?
A: Books first. I’ve enjoyed the Harry Potter movies as much as I enjoy the books, but that’s probably the exception. I get a vision in my head of what the book should look like, who the characters are based on descriptions, and what’s happening, and movies never match what I have in my head. I have a poster at home that shows an island where the top shows what you see, and underneath the water you see all of the vibrant fish and the enormity of the island and all of the things that you don’t get in the movie but that the book tells you.
Q: What advice would you give someone who wants to pursue a career as an English teacher?
A: I would say that the most beneficial thing I did was to substitute first and then teach later because I worked in a variety of classrooms and I saw what worked and what didn’t. If you’re interested in pursuing teaching, I would recommend substituting too. When you’re doing student teaching in a classroom, it’s kind of a perfect environment; you have the teacher there [and] you have a set of kids. When you’re substituting, you’re kind of thrown into the fire. Some of the best things that I learned were from some of the veteran teachers for whom I substituted at the high school where I went. My suggestion is, if you were interested in teaching, don’t just go the easier route, try substituting, because it’s a very different experience and I think it prepares you better in the long run.
Q: What is your favorite part about WA?
A: I don’t think I could narrow it down to just one, but I will say I think I work with the best department. Having worked in numerous schools in numerous states, I can say that with confidence that this is the most caring and most capable set of people I’ve ever had a chance to work with.