For most teachers at Erie High, their work year starts in the fall right along with their students. But for Emily Langenberg that was not the case.

Langenberg started teaching at Erie the beginning of 2022, after winter break. This will not only be Langenberg’s first time teaching at Erie, but also her first time teaching at all. In the fall of 2022, she was an assistant teacher here at Erie for Megan Witkin. But, when Witkin moved away, Langenberg was able to fill in the job. Langenberg says, “It just so happened that [Witkin] got a cool new opportunity to move to Europe, and [the school] needed an English teacher. [So,] I scored the job here, which is honestly amazing.” 

Langenberg has not always wanted to be a teacher. At first she was studying journalism. She did that for two years before she decided to go into English. She says, “I originally started out as a journalism major, and I was really, really into journalism. But I didn’t think that I was outgoing enough to be a reporter, ironically.” Because of that, she starting to think of a new career to get into, “[I] was like, ‘if I’m not going to continue with the journalism path, I want to stay in the English realm.’” 

For her, teaching English was something that fit that description, and was something she could enjoy. She says, “I love it. This is my dream job. I knew I wanted to be a teacher, I didn’t know how bad… until I came to Erie.” According to her, “It’s just like a nerd’s total dream.”

While she was earning her degree for teaching, Langenberg was able to do several practicums (a college course that allows students to get hands-on experience). It was during this time that Langenberg realized she wanted to teach high schoolers specifically. She recalls that during her second practicum, the teacher she was paired with, “held a really mature [and] fascinating conversation about a piece of literature,” According to her, “It was just cool to see teenagers engage in this kind of content.” 

Although she has only been at Erie a short time, Langenberg has already left an impression on her students. Braxton Gunter, a freshman in her class, says that, “She’s a really nice teacher, and I would rate her as one of my favorites.” He adds,”She’s also very hard working… and would just help you with anything you would ask her for.”

Currently, in her English 9 class, they are reading Unwind by Neil Schusterman as a part of their unit. According to Langenberg, this is what she’s most excited about in that class at the moment, “I really like dystopian literature, and it’s been fun getting the kids excited about [it]”

For Langenberg, having in depth conversations with her students is an experience she enjoys about teaching, “We’ve been having a lot of really good conversations about it. A lot of really thoughtful, thought provoking things that have made me think a little bit deeper about things, which has been cool.”

Though Langenberg’s career at Erie has been short, she puts effort and care into her teaching. Gunter concludes, “She’s a really great teacher… I feel like some kids don’t like language…But [for] freshmen coming in, if they get her class, I would encourage them to not worry.”