Act

My name is Rebekah, which is the Hebrew spelling. Almost always, people misspell my name as "Rebecca" or "Rebecka" or "Rebekka." I have kind of learned to live with the misspellings, but it does mean so much to me when someone who I don't know spells my name correctly. This makes me realize how meaningful it must be to students when teachers can spell or say their names correctly. I always ask students to pronounce their names for me so that I can make sure to say it correctly because I understand how important names are. In the future, I will make sure that I am not the only one who is able to pronounce a students name correctly, but also coteachers and classmates. 

My parents named me after a character of a show they were watching at the time. It does not have a ethnic origin. My aunts/uncles were all named started with the first letter “K”, so my mother followed that same logic and named both my brother and I with a “K”. I was more raised to be proud of my last name. My dad always told me to wear my last name proud, and to think with each and every action “Would an O’Donaghy do that?”. I think it took a lot for me to get used to this idea and when he would say this phrase to me. Sometimes I would be upset and angry, and he would respond with “Would an O’Donaghy act like that?”.  Even now as a married woman, I still have my given last name because I feel a sense of ownership of it, and that it gives me a sense of grounded.   I would assume that others just view my name as another name. I know my students view my name as an added challenge as they struggle to both say and spell my last name. They end up calling me “Ms O”, or some other version of O’Donaghy. I think that many of my students have a sense of ownership of their names as well. Unfortunately many of my students with their names originating from other countries do not directly show ownership of their names, and are quick to allow teachers to mispronounce their names. Personally this bothers me, and I always am sure to try my best to say their names as they want to be said. I think many students might not feel a deep sense of belonging to school, which can affect attendance, motivation, desire to do well. We want students to feel as though they belong to our school community, but a school filled with people who do not know them, understand them, or even try to say their name correctly can greatly affect them.

My mom picked out my name based on a tv show that she liked at the time. I can remember her telling me that she had an idea of what I would look like based on that character (I do not). The name was very popular the year I was born and was on the cheerleading squad with two other Brittanys my entire high school career. My name is of Latin origin and it literally means "from Brittany or Britain." I think if we aren't careful, we can create preconceived notions based on students name before we truly get to know our students. This is why it's so important to be educated. 

My name Ann Marie was selected by my parents. My mother liked the name Ann but she felt it needed a middle name to make it more complete. It does not have any ethnic origins.  However, when I got married and acquired Furcinito as my last name…challenges began. First was pronouncing it. Secondly various groups jockeyed for position to include me. My Hispanic students felt that Italian was close to their culture. Any student with a vowel ending their last name felt I was part of their culture.

I always tried to pronounce student names authentically. I know that many students would shorten or use nicknames to make the pronunciation easier for our American tongues. I can remember Estevan assuring me that I could call him Steven. However, I still called him Estevan as a sign of respect for his culture not because it was “easier”.  

I named my own children for my favorite Aunt and my Dad. It makes me happy to think their names will live on into the next generation.

Carroll is an Irish name.  It comes from the Gaelic name Cearbhall.  The surname is most frequently found in certain counties in Ireland. The meaning is "Warrior". Carroll is the Anglo/Latin version of Cearbhall.  The English version of it is Charles. I have family members named Charles Carroll so I guess they are really Charles Charles LOL!  Susan means "Lily" in Latin. So, therefore, I must be a lily warrior.

Last names, in many cultures, reflected the occupation or status of a family.  Many people, when presented with an unfamiliar name, both first and last, may think the name holder doesn't speak English.  Having gone to a parochial school with many "first generation" American students, having both first and last ethnic names, was not an unusual occurrence.

I have, at times, found myself challenged when trying to pronounce an unfamiliar name.  I had a friend whose family was from Eastern Europe and the pronunciation of the last name didn't start until the fifth letter. Tschj.  I won't spell the rest because 1) I won't get it right and 2) to protect their identity.  LOL

I find that those unfamiliar with my last name assume it is my first.

Megan was on-trend when my parents named me in the mid-eighties. My middle name, Brianna, came from a romance novel my mom was reading while she was pregnant. Megan is usually considered an Irish name, but I’m not Irish. When I got married, my surname became Healy. One time there was this old Irish man at a coffee shop I went to, and he asked me my name. When I said Megan, he proclaimed, “Oh Megan, a wonderful Irish name, wonderful!! What’s your last name?” When I told him, he actually fell off his barstool in his enthusiasm. I know lots of African-American students are named with an emphasis on uniqueness, even if its just the spelling that is different. And a lot of my Asian students, conversely, have surprisingly dated American names like Karen or Esther, and I always supposed it was in an effort to blend in instead of standing out. I wonder, on applications and such, it will be more or less difficult to get a job with a name that sounds distinctly black in ethnicity. I was always coached to think about what the name would look like on a diploma before choosing one… nothing too cutesy or ethnic. The only way I can imagine a name affecting academic performance is if it were difficult to pronounce. I know I call on students less if I don’t remember how to say their name correctly because I don’t want to embarrass them, but that does give them less academic rigor. And we’ve all known a kid who was challenged socially for their name, like a kid in my class with the last name “Baah”, and that peer rejection does affect his performance. 

My first name is biblical, and was chosen because my father is a minister and both my parents are Christian. 

My middle name (Carrell) comes from my material grandfather, whose last name is Stanton. We are direct cousins of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, women's rights suffragist, and Thomas Stanton, who served as an interpreter among Native Americans in the original colonies. 

My last name (maiden: Flemming) is Flemish, or from Flanders, which is close to Scotland. My father's family originally came from this region and moved to Canada several generations ago. 

I have pride in my names because they represent my heritage and ancestor's family and personal journies. And I am proud of their identities. Yet I also realize that many of my students may have no idea what their names mean or the histories of their families. So when asked about my background, I talk about it, but am careful not to press them for the same information or come across as superior. I like to add in silly and negative bits of trivia as well as demonstrating that I am proud of where I came from in the hopes that they might feel the same way. 

I am not sure the ethnic origin of my name. My first name was chosen because my mom was obsessed with the movie Splash and I am unsure the origin of my last name. As an educator I think it is extremely important to say each student's name correctly and to also teach students to advocate for themselves if someone says it incorrectly. I think it is oppressive when someone "can't" say a person's name so they say something more "palatable". That is why it is so important to teach students the power in naming and honoring someone's name.