McWilliams’ lifelong love of education fuels 34-year career

Hampton-Dumont third grade teacher Terri McWilliams can point to three core lessons she learned as a child that lead to her career as a school teacher.
“I had parents and grandparents that taught me to love learning, love people and strive to make the world a better place,” she said. “Given those gifts and lessons early in life, my hope was that by becoming a teacher, I could give away some of the love for life and learning that I had received to children in my classroom.”
McWilliams, who began her teaching career at South Side Elementary, will retire at the end of this school year after nearly 35 years in the district.
The 1975 Sheldon High School graduate first came to H-D as a fourth grade teacher shortly after obtaining her degree from the University of Northern Iowa. She became familiar with the Hampton area during commutes between Sheldon and Cedar Falls. When the opportunity arose to interview in Hampton, she jumped at the chance to learn more about the community.
“It felt like home,” she said. “I was impressed with the administrators and the staff that I met the day of my interview and I was fortunate to be offered the job.”
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