My father was a New York City fireman, my mother was a registered nurse. My parents pushed us to find something we loved, but find something we love that had a purpose. And I have a purpose. I'm a district 75 special education teacher in New York City.

So it was about three years ago, it was my first year at 177 Q, and I came across a grant to raise chickens. And I thought, this is an opportunity for my students who aren't necessarily included in these kinds of projects. So I thought, why can't they do it?

I have never raised chickens before. This is my first time. It is different every day. It doesn't look perfect. We wobble, we stumble, but there's like this sense of pride that we didn't see in these boys beforehand. I sound like a crazy lady, but I think that the chickens understand that something is unique about the boys. It is a lot of work. It is exhausting and sometimes backbreaking work. But they never, ever quit. And that is such a huge lesson in and of itself.