Bryant Teaching Assistant Brittane McGough-Hackney grew up in Westland, the oldest of five children raised by her grandparents and an uncle. She attended Inkster Public Schools until high school, when she went on to graduate from Harry S. Truman High School in Taylor. Education has always been a pivotal and important part of McGough-Hackney’s life. Her grandmother was a teacher for 43 years and then transitioned to Instructional Supervisor for five years prior to retiring, and volunteered for two years after retirement. Her grandfather retired as a school principal after 45 years in the Detroit Public School System; and now sits on the Zoning Board for the city of Westland. Her uncle, who also spent time in the education system as a reading and intervention tutor, is an author.
Prior to her current position, McGough-Hackney worked as a residential counselor in both a boy’s and a girls’ home for troubled youth, as well as a teacher assistant at South Canton Scholars before coming to Ann Arbor. McGough-Hackney is the oldest of five children, and has two sisters and a set of twin brothers. When she first attended college, she chose psychology as her career path, partly because her friends often told her she was a good person to talk to. It was after attending the University of Michigan that McGough-Hackney decided to change paths. She was working with Seed Time and Harvest productions on a play called “Beat the Streets.” After the play, the cast and crew interacted with students and staff to really see the impact of the message. McGough-Hackney had a feeling then that she wanted to make an impact, with a message that would help children feel better about themselves and situations.
“It’s a beautiful feeling when one discovers their purpose,” she says, noting that it was her own experiences, ideas, and admiration for the classroom that drove her to this career. She is married to her husband Tristan, who is a computer and technology teacher, and they have a daughter, Leila, 15.
The family lives in Canton. McGough-Hackney loves to cook, write poetry, craft, do brunch with her friends, watch movies, and spend time with family. “Family is my foundation,” she says.
McGough-Hackney was nominated for this honor by Bryant and Pattengill School Psychologist Charlene Mangi.
“Brittane is incredibly dedicated to her students—not just to helping them get through their day, but to really understanding them, and to fostering independence,” says Mangi. “She has an exemplary understanding of and ability to respond to children’s behavior in ways that both make them feel safe and loved, but also help them learn new skills. She is always thinking of new ways to both support and challenge the kids she works with so they can be successfully included with their peers. Students across the building love her, and she’s also a true team player, collaborating with colleagues to implement new plans, schedules or interventions.”
How did you first get interested in working as a teacher’s assistant?
I became interested in being a teacher’s assistant, while I was working at a boy’s home. I loved the idea of being around children, and I loved being the person who could help children. At that time I was working predominantly with students who were environmentally challenged and I needed and desired a change from my job at the time that would help me be fulfilled.I thought this change could help me make a difference in the world.
How does this job compare to your last job?
My job doesn’t compare to anything that I have experienced. I take one day at a time and thoughtfully plan my next day. I feel as though I can do more, be more, and step up to the plate with my own ideas as well as implement things and enhance goals that were put together by a team of professional individuals. It feels more like a collaborative and supportive effort day to day.
Why do you like working at Bryant Elementary?
I love working at Bryant Elementary because it feels like family. I am loyal to Bryant Elementary as well as or team of TAs. It feels like a home that I come to every day for seven hours to work with individuals who are supportive and add positivity to the day as a whole. I’m just as grateful to work with very capable Teaching Assistants as well as individuals willing to work collaboratively. The atmosphere in this place is phenomenal. Our school has a welcoming spirit with a can-do mindset and I’m blessed to be a part of a place that pushes you to become a better employee as well as a better individual. I have had the privilege of working in multiple classrooms in different grades with the most amazing and innovative teachers. Our principal, Jamar Humphrey, serves daily. Outside, inside, and at lunch, and some days as a counselor, teacher, and secretary. With his leadership, he has set a standard of excellence that we all follow.
Can you describe a typical day working with your two students and what kinds of support you provide?
A typical workday for my students consists of consistent scheduling, classroom work within the general education setting as well as providing daily elements to assist with their learning and overall goals to use for everyday living. Education has a dual meaning for me. I believe it has everything to do with academia and the skills necessary to thrive daily in other environments. I want both boys to have the best school experience possible. I love to get the general education class involved in their social connections and interactions as well as peer-to-peer learning. I am open to exploring the things that they show interest in and use a lot of language to help with language input. I watch for facial expressions and body language to help them detail possible emotions and expressions of their needs. I want them to learn all the beautiful things that the world has to offer in the school environment.
I find that the strategies that are most effective for engaging with my students involve first finding what they enjoy. Students can appear to be many different individuals on paper and in a file, but I believe the most important part is to understand who they are as a person. I want them to feel like they are people and when I assume competency, it seems to boost their confidence in doing things that seem difficult day to day. I want them to try all the things and have the exposure.Creativity is one of the best parts about this job. I get to expand my knowledge while I am expanding theirs. I believe that when other children are engaged with our neurodivergent students, it helps add to their personal values and community as a whole. I have experienced first hand that the more they engage, they learn how to effectively treat students as a part of the group.
Most days I try to take time out in the classroom where there is time and space to do so; and collaborate with the classroom teacher on what unit material is next or what the expectations have been for the students daily. I speak with multiple specialists on how to implement each goal in their everyday classroom environment. I believe it is important to have a multidimensional service program where our students can best learn with different ideas and challenge them with new things to learn from areas all across the board.
What personal qualities or strengths do you think are most important for a teacher’s assistant?
I think some of the most important qualities and strengths that you should have for a teacher’s assistant is to be, consistent, attentive, engaging, practical, and quick to think on your feet for things that are not presented in book form or black and white. Have compassion, education is a work of the heart and requires pure love for the job; the love for students, and the love to help. Every circumstance and situation is different, but sometimes to be innovative and learning new ways that you can help to gain trust and to provide comfortability for each and every student. Have and open mind. And take every day by day. Everyday is not the same in every student is not the same.
How do you help build the students’ confidence and foster a positive mindset towards learning?
I hope to build students confidence and foster a positive mindset toward learning by assuming competency. I believe the best thing that you can do for most of these children is to believe that they already can. I believe when you believe they can; they believe they can and then they will. Trust is essential to my boy’s day to day. They want to know they are safe and when they feel safe; there’s a confidence that you give to students daily to help them learn, as well as build on certain things that they already know. You give them positive praise for that in the most exciting way and try to do it as often times as you see it. They want to know that you champion for them. I am a champion for theses children because they are truly superheroes.
What have you learned from this experience that has made an impact on your life?
This experience has definitely taught me patience, and the ability to better problem solve based on the situation. All children are different and have needs. It’s my job to help meet their educational and immediate needs in partnership with the teachers. It has taught me that having “joy” is an essential part of working, and children feel that joy.I have learned to completely give my all when it comes to them thriving in school and in other environments.
What’s the best part of your workday?
The best part of my work day are my students be excited to be with me; when they are excited about learning or have mastered a goal. Sometimes I make goals for myself,so that we thrive together. My two and I are a team.
What’s most exciting about your personal life? Your professional life?
What’s most exciting about my personal life is that I love family. Family is my foundation and is my backbone to a lot of the philosophies that I have about caring for children. I love my home life and I love how I was raised. I was raised by my grandparents, with my grandfather (Daddy) being a retired principal from Detroit Public Schools and my grandmother being a retired teacher and Instructional Supervisor from Inkster Public Schools. My husband is a teacher and my uncle, an author of five books. I have a daughter who is thriving in high school and I could not ask for more. I love to cook and I love to have family dinners. I love to spend a lot of time with my friends and do brunch. The most exciting thing about my professional life is that I am currently in school to become a teacher through the Ann Arbor Public Schools “Grow your Own (GYO) Staff” program. I am living my life’s dream and I thank God for it all.
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