Standard Nine: Professionalism, Leadership and Advocacy The competent teacher is an ethical and reflective practitioner who exhibits

professionalism; provides leadership in the learning community; and advocates for students, parents or guardians, and the profession. I chose this artifact because I believe that it is a good representation of the standard. This artifact is an appropriate representation of the standard because it displays professionalism, my leadership in the community and my advocacy for students and my profession. During all of my time with TAP-In Leadership Academy and Edison Middle School, I was required to maintain a level of professionalism in order to serve as a role model for the students that I was helping tutor. I was also a leader in my community through this organization and tutoring at a local middle school. With this program, I helped create a unit activity that allowed the students to be involved and learn more about the people and culture of their community. They were asked to research various aspects of their community and tie it into the larger themes of the Harlem Renaissance. I was able to lead students in a project that directly related to the community they are a part of. I was also an advocate for students and my profession simply through the act of tutoring itself. I was there to be a support system for the students and to help them through any academic struggles they were having. We had weekly progress reports from their teachers so that we were able to assess which areas of his or her academics needed more work. I was also an advocate for my profession because I was putting in time and effort to make sure that these students were succeeding in school. I had a stake in their education because I wanted to, not because I was forced to. I am passionate about teaching and helping students and that really showed through my time tutoring. This tutoring experience was one of my first encounters with student in a larger community. All the other tutoring work I had done in my rural hometown; I was comfortable there and it was familiar. Coming to Champaign and tutoring in a local middle school was a completely new experience for me. I had never been in a school of that size or demographic makeup. At first I was uncomfortable because I didnt know the students or the school dynamic, but as my time there progressed I felt much more at ease. Through my time at Edison Middle School, I experienced more diversity than I had in my entire education but I also learned immensely from that. I learned about issues for students in the Champaign area, issues in the school in regards to bullying, and issues for students of broken families. Each of these issues made me reflect on my role as an educator and mentor in my students lives and the important role I can play in shaping their future.