Melanie Williams

Seventh grade teacher hits 14th year with middle school Melanie Williams

 by Kelly Brannock American Falls School District

 Melanie Williams teaches seventh grade Social Studies, Yearbook, and Civil Rights at William Thomas Middle School. This is her 14th year at WTMS. Teaching at WTMS was her first teaching job and she plans on it being her last because she never wants to leave that school. Last year Melanie was selected as one of the “Teachers That Make A Difference” and she feels it is the highest honor she could’ve received. Riggins, ID, is where Melanie grew up. Riggins’ claim to fame is that Leighton VanderEsch, linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, is from there. She went to Ricks College right out of high school and then worked for a while to support her husband. She went back to school at Utah State and earned bachelor degrees in Pre-Law and Philosophy and a few years later, earned a bachelor and a master degree from ISU in Secondary Education. Melanie initially went into teaching because she thought it would be a career that would work with family life. Since then she has fallen in love with middle school students. They are the absolute best to her and make her laugh, smile, shrug her shoulders, and cry. Melanie enjoys teaching about the Middle East, Europe, and South Asia. She loves European history and thinks the Middle East is fascinating. She wants her students to know they are important people and they are loved. Developing a desire to learn about the history and cultures of the world and to develop respect for all people is something else she wishes for her students. In the past year, one of the interesting things that has happened to Melanie was her husband being quarantined last March. For almost six months, they only left the house for doctor appointments. She was able to get groceries most of the time, but her kids became their shoppers for a while. Coming back to school and seeing people again was great for her. When not at school, Melanie likes to spend time with her family, read, knit, and watch tv and movies