Joy L Miketzuk, Living for Education
Joy L. Miketzuk regards education as being the single-most important thing in developing the potentialities of a child. To be sure, teaching in large inner city schools is certainly nothing that only the most dedicated and altruistic teacher would willingly undertake. We have all surely read articles in newspapers and magazines detailing the immense difficulties and dangers such educators confront on a day-to-day basis. However, unlike many of the children she now teaches, Joy Miketzuk grew up in a small town in New Jersey. She was raised in humble conditions, to hard-working and down-to-earth parents, whose determination and persistence allowed them to save up their hard-earned dollars for their daughter's education. It is surprising then to see just how well Joy Miketzuk has adapted to big city life, especially working in arguably one of the most challenging educational environments any teacher can imagine.
Joy L. Miketzuk regards education as a lifestyle. Indeed, she daily demonstrates her commitment to the saying that,  “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Although it is true that teaching is one of the most admired professions in the world - although the derisory salaries paid by governments wouldn’t suggest it -  anyone who admits to being a teacher is almost instantly greeted by comments and remarks of surprise and veiled sympathy.The profession is notoriously difficult- trying to inspire and educate excitable and playful children in the strangely adult environment of a classroom with desks and a board - and it takes a very special type of person to flourish in this most demanding of professions.
On top of this, teaching in a large city, let alone one of the largest in the world, comes with its own set of problems. Like every other large metropolis, New York City is associated with the social inequalities that unfortunately blight every city. Frequently, it is those from the poorest backgrounds who attend these inner city state schools, and it is not frivolous to bear in mind the well-known research statistic that children from poorer backgrounds tend to have the worst behavioral and academic performance. Certainly, Joy L. Miketzuk is convinced of the truth in the observation.
Joy L. Miketzuk has found her other passion to be winter sports. In the heavy snow she was inspired by the environment and its capacity for providing great sporting moments and she threw herself into a world of activity. Since her early twenties she has been skiing, snow tubing and snowboarding in the most popular locations for winter sport in the United States. With her spare time so well filled it is no surprise that she has become something of a minor celebrity sportsperson wherever she travels. See more of Joy L. Miketzuk on vimeo.