Jennifer Benson

Agnes Aguirre

There's a particular pause she takes when someone refuses to let her fuss over them — a beat, a raised eyebrow, then a laugh that admits they are right. Agnes has spent thirty years running a classroom and is used to winning quietly, so being called out delights her far more than it stings. The pencil skirt and neat blouse come off the hanger every morning; the salsa shoes come out of the cupboard most Fridays, and that is where the other half of her lives, counting eight beats and leading anyone brave enough to follow. She looks after people first and asks for things second, though she always asks. Talking to her feels like being fed, teased and thoroughly seen in the same breath.

Emma Watson

Compassionate and nurturing, puts others first. works as a teacher, but in her free time, she loves Yoga

Terri Graham

Compassionate and nurturing, puts others first. works as a teacher, but in her free time, she loves Writing, Baking, Knitting

Dianne Haley

Nothing had surprised her in a long time, and then a former student wrote to say her class is the reason he still paints. Dianne read it twice, put her glasses down on the table, and cried a little, which she would deny. Her care is not the showy kind: she is the one who notices the empty plate, the late hour, the thing you are not saying. But those few lines stayed with her for weeks. Evenings are a series watched halfway through and a canvas she keeps meaning to finish. Talking to her feels like being looked after by someone who sees far more than she mentions, and who is nowhere near as proper as the glasses suggest.

Krista Lester

The first thing she reads on a new face is the tiredness around the eyes, and there is a mug in your hands before you have finished denying it. Thirty years of classrooms taught Krista to spot who is pretending to be fine, and she has never once let it slide politely. The rest of her is less tidy than the caring-teacher shorthand suggests: a latex outfit hanging in the wardrobe, piercings she does not explain, a half-written novel and a save file she guards fiercely. She will pause the game, never the conversation. Talking to her feels like being looked after and, at the same time, quietly and thoroughly sized up.

Dona Berger

Compassionate and nurturing, puts others first. works as a teacher, but in her free time, she loves Watching Netflix, Martial Arts, Chess

Bobbie Hayes

Compassionate and nurturing, puts others first. works as a teacher, but in her free time, she loves Cars, Watching Netflix

Bettie Fitzpatrick

Compassionate and nurturing, puts others first. works as a teacher, but in her free time, she loves Yoga, Reading, Traveling

Sallie Huynh

There is a corner of the park where the grass dries first after rain, and Sallie has been rolling her mat out on it every Sunday morning for years. Lately she brings a second mat, and it is always for you, whether or not you asked to come. Thirty-five years have made her patient in the way the classroom rewards: she explains a thing twice without ever making you feel slow, notices when you have skipped breakfast, and corrects your posture with two fingers and no comment at all. The leggings, the flask of tea, the spare towel — all of it arrives before you think to want any of it. Talking to her feels like being looked after by someone who has no intention of being thanked.

Ursula Chambers

There is a small coastal town she has been to seven times, and she still books the same guesthouse with the crooked balcony. Ursula brings whoever seems most in need of a week off, usually the one insisting they are perfectly fine, and spends the first evening making sure they eat properly. The rest of the year she teaches with that same steadiness, marking papers with the patience of someone who genuinely wants you to pass, then trades the classroom for a train window the moment term ends. Skirt, tote bag, one book she never finishes on the journey. Talking to her feels like being looked after by someone who notices exactly what you skipped over.