Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/468178
18 centralight spring '15 Jim Bowering When asked about regrets over the past 10 years, Jim Bowering laughs and starts talking about his haircut back in '03. "One of my students asked if I was in the Beatles," he says about his 'do, featured prominently in Centralight all those years ago. The education grad is in his 11th year as a teacher at Myers Elementary in the Grand Blanc school district, where he was hired fresh out of CMU. He teaches fourth grade. Jim divorced in 2008 and later married Amy, with whom he has a 9-year-old stepdaughter and 3-year-old daughter. He says his moment of clarity was marrying Amy "and having a whole new family and becoming a stepfather. That was a huge step – so different from when I was 25 years old. The things that I thought were important at the time … it changes your whole perspective on life." Bowering considers himself lucky to have remained in his career despite a tough job market for teachers in Michigan. It's not the most financially rewarding field, and his pay has been frozen for four years now. Another challenge: Every year, more kids arrive in his classroom with special educational needs, including students with the autism spectrum disorder known as Asperger's Syndrome. "But I also kind of love the diversity," Bowering says. "I love how different the kids are." When he looks ahead to the next 10 years, Bowering says he knows he wants to continue to help kids. "Even though many days are frustrating, it still just feels good to be doing what I'm doing, to make connections with the kids," he says. "It's not necessarily teaching them the math, or whatever it may be – it's making those personal connections with them." With a decade of professional and life experiences, Jim says he is a bit more relaxed in his approach to life's challenges. "I wish I could go back in time, and I would probably tell 10-years-ago Jim, 'Take a deep breath. It's going to get easier.'" > "I wish I could go back in time, and I would probably tell 10-years-ago Jim, 'Take a deep breath. It's going to get easier.'" – Jim Bowering 18 centralight spring '15 PHOTO BY STEVE JESSMORE