by Leah Crisman, executive editor 

Last summer while on vacation in California, English teacher Magda Buikema received a phone call that officially changed her career: on the other line was principal Gwen Elder calling to tell her that she had gotten the teaching job.

“I said ‘YES,’” Buikema said. “I had that kind of hanging over my head like, ‘what am I going to do next year?’”

It was a big moment. A year ago Buikema had been a law school graduate hoping to change to teaching. Now with a probational certification under her belt, Buikema was ready to transition to her role as a teacher. According to Buikema, the career switch wasn’t an altogether drastic change as practicing law and teaching are both very service-oriented jobs.

“You’re dealing with people,” Buikema said. “You’ve got to be tactful, you’ve got to be just aware of who you’re talking to and how to talk to them. You need to be able to communicate clearly and thoughtfully and persuade people to do things–and that’s what I’m trying to do every day–convince people that these things are important!”

It was her desire to use language to help people that drew her to law school in the first place. Buikema had worked at a battered woman’s shelter in Houston that housed a large amount of immigrants. Her experiences there spurred her to become an immigration lawyer.

“Writing is one of the most powerful tools out there–to be able to draft a brief that can get someone out of trouble, get someone where they need to be, get someone the money that’s owed to them–I thought that was a very cool line of work, and I still think it is,” Buikema said.

So why did she leave the law profession? There isn’t a simple answer, but she says it helps to think of it less as forsaking one career and more as joining another.

Several factors were involved. While she enjoyed her time at law school, she explained that the job is “inherently adversarial.”

“That’s not to say that everyone I met at law school was a jerk, but the culture becomes very tense and not very collaborative,” Buikema said. “I just felt that I didn’t belong there.”

Apart from a sense of disconnect, Buikema had also been drawn to teaching for quite a while.

“I think the tipping point was moving to College Station,” Buikema said. “My husband is in vet school here, and the legal market is miniscule.”

After passing the requisite tests and observation hours, Buikema began substitute teaching for CSISD.

“I have all the sympathy in the world for substitute teachers,” she joked.

One incident from that period stands out. When English teacher Stefano Salerno was called away for a family emergency, Buikema was called in to substitute teach long-term.

“It was a very weird situation to come into,” Buikema said. “That day I was supposed to be substitute teaching for elementary school students when they called me and said ‘come here now.’”

She left that experience hoping to become a full-time teacher at A&M Consolidated.

“I was really impressed with the sense of community–I was like, ‘dang, this would be a good place to work,’” Buikema said.

After a semester as a new faculty member, Buikema’s opinion hasn’t changed.

“They’ve been very good about taking care of me. Across the board, I have incredible coworkers,” Buikema said.

The feeling appears to be mutual.

“She’s doing a great job,” fellow freshman English teacher Michele Williams said. “Her enthusiasm really comes through and she cares about the kids.”

In addition to the five English I and English I Honors classes she teaches, Buikema also helps out the debate team. She serves as chaperone, drives the debate students to tournaments and generally does anything to assist debate sponsor Roy Rodriguez.

“She likes making sure everything’s in order,” senior debate member Sophia Woodward said. “She’s really easy to get along with.”

Buikema’s background also provides her enough experience to judge competitions at the debate tournaments.

“If you’re an English teacher with a law degree, you know what a proficient speaker sounds like,” Buikema said.

Overall, Buikema affirms that she’s glad things worked out the way they did.

“I really feel like I’ve found my place,” Buikema said.