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Writer's pictureNamira Rubaiyath

Faculty Highlight: Miss. O'Kelley


Photos courtesy of Miss. O'Kelley


There is a simple, unattested truth that students around the world have accepted — Teachers do not have lives outside the classroom. They live, breathe, and drink the chapters of textbooks and have never stepped foot outside school grounds. The problem is that that is just not true. Rationally, we are aware of that, but it still shocks us when we see them in a setting we are not used to. That is exactly why we at Pillar do faculty highlights, to give students a more authentic view of the faculty that makes VHHS possible. The faculty member highlighted this time is the much-loved Miss. O’Kelley.


Miss. O’Kelley grew up right here in Birmingham. She describes her childhood as the typical, fun 70s-80s childhood, similar to the lives of the kids in Stranger Things, just without the monsters. She spent her time with her friends, swanning around her neighborhood until the street lights turned on and making memories. Horses were a big part of her childhood (though she has five cats now), much of her time was spent caring for them, going to barrel racing shows, and riding.

By the time she got to high school, Miss. O’Kelley developed a very distinctive personality, calling herself an “artsy bookworm.” Though she teaches AP Psychology now, she loved AP Art as a student. Based on all the artwork in her classroom, that isn’t a surprise at all. Books such as Jane Eyre and Sherlock Holmes kept her busy. Additionally, she took theater classes with her friends. John Hughes movies were her favorite and rock bands like Modern English and INXS were the background music of her life. 


VHHS has had Miss. O’Kelley as a teacher for 25 years now. This year is her 29th in teaching. She teaches AP Psychology and Sociology/Psychology now, but has also taught World History and US History before. She has a Bachelor’s in Psychology with a minor in Sociology. She also has a Master of Education degree and a Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) degree. The latter is one of the things she is most proud of, having gotten the degree while working at VHHS as a teacher of three subjects and being a single mom. She is also very proud of her children. The most precious memories she has are adopting her first son and the birth of her second. 


She is a teacher now, but she wanted to be a librarian growing up, having spent hours in the library after school. In fact, she plans on being a librarian after her teaching career to put her MLIS degree to good use. 


From being held by Dolly Parton as a baby (yes, really!), to being an artsy high school student, and going on to get three degrees, these accomplishments and memories have made Miss. O’Kelley who she is today.

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