Amber Burgess

Amber Burgess is an elementary school teacher at North Star Academy Independence Park Elementary School.

Tell us about a core memory at Uncommon.

I have so many core memories, but there’s one core memory I have during my senior year of high school. I was able to be one of the first peer tutors in math and even for peers in younger grades. I feel as though this is where my love for teaching really started to come alive! Being able to help and guide other individuals to get one the hardest subjects (algebra) was so fulfilling!

What made you come back to Uncommon to teach? Tell us about your trajectory.

I originally started working for Uncommon during my senior year of college in the main office. Throughout that time, I was able to see how much North Star had changed from the time I attended as a scholar. The kids had interactive time in math and literacy and it was not just about learning, scholars also had time to have fun. Every time I came it was genuinely a place that I did not want to leave and that’s when I made the choice that when I graduated college, I needed to become a teacher at Vailsburg and contribute to the difference that was occurring. I also knew that my experience going from K-12 would one day help other scholars or even adults as they navigated their way through North Star.

What is something you live by? What impact does that have on the work and life you live?

I live by the quote “lead with love, fight with passion” and also that all children deserve to have the best access to the world possible. For me, everything I do is with love from every lesson, every conversation, every handshake, every hard talk because I want to instill in my students the same best practices that were instilled in me from a very young age. This is hard work and if I don’t fight for my kids, to me it’s like “who will”? Who better to lead them or fight for them than someone that sat in the same chair, that felt every emotion and feeling that they are feeling right now? The work that I do is hard, but it has purpose and meaning and I truthfully would not change it for the world. This is my calling and I am so happy I was able to transition back into the same world that raised me and be apart of the Uncommon community that made me the powerhouse I am today!

Share one piece of advice for Uncommon alumni in college or transitioning into adulthood.

You are exactly where you need to be in this stage of your life, be patient with yourself and know that success is not about having every answer right now. Take every lesson you can, grow and build on it.