Joanne Quinn

First job: Working in my parents' shop.

What it taught me: From a young age, I've always been a chatterbox. Working in my parents' shop from the age of 11 only made this worse! I loved chatting to the customers, to the sales reps, and to the other staff who worked for us. I learned so much from my time working in our shop – everything from wiring-in an ice-cream machine to reconciling bank accounts! I can merchandise shelves in my sleep and can spot a use-by date from a mile off – quite a niche set of skills! Along with the very early mornings and late nights that came with running a family business, I learned very early on that the personal touch of addressing customers by their first name, or remembering that it was their birthday, was something that people really appreciated. When I call in to the shop all these years later, I still meet some of our long-standing customers and love chatting to them. Working in our family business taught me lots of things – the importance of family being one of the main ones. It also taught me that I 'm a people-person, and that those personal connections are what makes life worth living. All those years spent serving the lovely customers of Dungannon and beyond was a great learning curve for everything else I've gone on to do in my life. And I wouldn't change a single second of any of it.

Family/status: Single.

Best advice anyone ever gave you: ‘Surround yourself with positive people' – sage advice given to me by our wonderful VP, Gary Brennan.

Best advice you could give someone thinking of a teaching career: Do it! It's such a rewarding job. Don't be afraid to ask questions and don't be afraid to make mistakes. That's all part of learning!

As a little girl, I always wanted to be a Blue Peter presenter and would pretend to do demonstrations in our kitchen. Thankfully, I grew out of that notion! I attended three different primary schools and, when my parents finally decided to settle in Dungannon, I attended St Patrick's Girls' Academy. My Academy days were some of the best days of my life – I loved that school. My teachers were incredible and always had such high aspirations for me. While at the Academy, I sang in the school choir, something I thoroughly enjoyed. My Music teacher, Mrs Duffy, was also my piano teacher and, as someone who rarely practised the piano when she was supposed to, I'm sure I drove her mad! Despite that, she passed on her love of music to me and it has remained with me ever since. At A-Level, I studied Media Studies, English Literature, and Politics. My Media Studies teacher, Mr O'Neill, has had a huge influence on my career and my love for Media Studies. He is someone I admire a lot and I've always wanted to inspire my students with the same love for the subject as he inspired in me. When I left school, I had dreams of becoming a journalist before finally settling on teaching. I studied English and Film at Queen's before completing my PGCE in Coleraine. That same year, I was the Traffic Correspondent on Cool FM – something I thoroughly enjoyed! My first teaching post was in St Ciaran's High School, Ballygawley. I met some wonderful people while teaching there and made some incredible memories during those three years – most notably playing the role of Mrs Johnstone in 'Blood Brothers'. I came to Hazelwood all those years ago and haven't looked back since! I am very proud of Hazelwood and feel privileged to work there. Outside of school, I sit on the Restorative Practices Forum in NI and I am a passionate practitioner of Restorative Practices. Despite teaching Media Studies, I am the world's worst binge-watcher of TV shows and I have a terrible habit of buying books and never reading them (I never have the time!).