Rachel Sadlemire knew early on that she wanted to work with children. More than that, she wanted to be the adult who sees potential before a child sees it in themselves.

Today, as the AVID teacher at Tavares Middle School, she gets to live that calling every single day.

She began her career in Lake County Schools as a school social worker. While she loved building relationships with families and supporting students behind the scenes, she realized her heart belonged in the classroom. Teaching allows her to become part of each student’s daily story, not only guiding their academics, but helping shape their confidence.

Before stepping into her current role, Rachel taught second grade for many years and loved every minute of it. Still, she knew that if the AVID position ever opened at Tavares Middle, she would apply. Middle schoolers, she says, are the perfect mix of sass, curiosity and uncertainty.

“They are standing at the edge of who they will become, and I feel incredibly blessed to walk alongside them during those pivotal years,” she says.

One of her greatest joys is teaching many of the same students from sixth through eighth grade, watching their growth over three formative years.

In full-circle moments, Rachel has even taught middle school students she once had in second grade. “In many ways,” she says, “I feel like they’ve grown up with me.”

Being a safe space for her students keeps her in the profession, and she is proud to be “their person,” the adult they know they can count on. She treasures the lightbulb moments when understanding clicks, but she is equally passionate about watching her students grow into confident, resilient young people.

Rachel hopes her students remember how deeply they were loved, how proud she was of them and how fiercely she believed in who they were becoming.

The motto on her classroom wall says it best: “The future of the world is in this classroom!”