04/09/2019 01:52:12 PMAt 8 years old, Amy Poerschke knew what she wanted in life. She had gone to her older brother’s college graduation and admired the fancy regalia worn by students in the front row. On Oct. 3, 1996, in second grade, she declared her dream as part of a class assignment.
“I’m going to get a doctorate,” she wrote in pencil in perfect cursive.
The piece of paper now hangs framed on her office wall at Durham Elementary, where she serves as principal. Also hanging: her three diplomas – from Baylor University, where she earned a B.S. in early childhood education; the University of St. Thomas, where she earned an M.Ed. in educational leadership; and the University of Houston, where she earned an Ed.D. in professional leadership – K-12 in 2017.
Poerschke has since accomplished goals she didn’t know she had.
In February, she won the Elementary Principal of the Year Award from the Houston Independent School District.
And this month, a week after turning 31, Poerschke will receive the UH College of Education’s 2019 Rising Star Award, given to outstanding young alumni.