ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT on Bethany Keel Hunt ‘14 (Below is Bethany’s full spotlight from the 2021 SOAR magazine)“I’m so excited to share my whereabouts nowadays and express my gratitude for how much Donoho has impacted my trajectory over the last 7 or so years post-grad. My name is Bethany Hunt (previously Keel) and I graduated from Donoho in 2014. My husband and I currently live in Starkville, Mississippi. I graduated with my undergraduate degree in Special Education in May of 2018 from Auburn University. I immediately began teaching special education at a local primary school in August of that year while also beginning my Master’s degree in Special Education. I graduated with my Master’s in Special Education from Auburn (War Eagle!) in May of 2020. My heart for people with disabilities began with my mom, who is also a special education teacher. Since graduating from Donoho, I have had the remarkable privilege and honor of getting to spend so much time within my field of interest, soaking up every opportunity to learn more and more about the disability community and how I can be a practical advocate within it. Auburn’s special education program spoiled me with a multitude of practicums, a diverse internship, and a setup to begin my career with an amazing tool-belt. My passion is basically to ensure that every student that I come into contact with receives respect, a tailored curriculum to meet their educational needs, and support to not only achieve their long term goals, but cater to their natural strengths. I am currently teaching special education for my fourth year, and it has been my favorite yet! I am an elementary self contained special education teacher, which means I have my own class of students. We have a LOT of fun, I make sure of that! My trajectory, both at the collegiate level and post grad, has been significantly impacted by my experience at Donoho both academically and personally. I distinctly remember feeling over prepared for most of my core classes my freshman year at Auburn. I had become quite the note taker, which I can specifically thank Matt Ford’s class for. I was so academically challenged at Donoho, especially since I had just transferred my junior year, and was not at all used to the excellent standard that is set for students. That challenge was well worth the reward I gained as a young adult navigating the demands of college courses. Although academics are so important, the memories I made at Donoho within the Fine Arts Program, led under the fabulous Ashley Burrage, are some of my most cherished. I gained the unique opportunity as the “new girl” to hone in on my interests and thrive within a theater program community, which in turn made me feel so much less like a “new girl.” My confidence skyrocketed because of the shots that the Donoho staff took on me. Because of this, I am now able to pinpoint my two years as a Falcon as fundamental in the path I am currently taking. My greatest word of wisdom I can give to current Donoho students is simple: What you have at Donoho is SO GOOD. As a current teacher, I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that the teachers you have are one in a million. Do not take for granted all of the opportunities that are around you to learn and to grow from some of the best teachers in Alabama. My favorite Donoho tradition has got to be the senior lounge and all of its amenities. Current students, when you all go to college, tell your friends about the senior lounge and their jaws will drop to the floor.” – Bethany Hunt Thank you, Bethany, for being a bright light in your students’ lives. Way to make us proud!
