When Julia Tristin was in kindergarten, she coaxed her younger sister, Samantha, into playing school with her for hours. Tristin was always her teacher, giving her assignments and grading her sister’s worksheets.
“It was nice because I was able to teach her what I was learning, so I was years ahead of her,” Tristin recalls. “She thinks that’s why she’s so smart.”
The 22-year-old Monroe native graduated from Providence College last Sunday with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and special education. She has also competed in the Miss Rhode Island USA pageant.
Regarding what she likes most about teaching, Tristin said: “I want to say it all, but if I could narrow it down, it would be to see that ‘aha’ moment, especially with special needs kids.”
Ms. Tristin worked with second grade students during her student teaching at Sarah Dyer Burns Elementary School in Johnston, Rhode Island.
“This is a tough year,” she said. “It’s really hard for them because they’re learning a lot of new topics. To put it another way, you can see the look in their eyes. A light shined in their eyes and they said, Thank you very much, Tristin!
Tristin, who graduated as Musk High School’s Class of 2020, is survived by his family, which includes his parents Faith and Ed, younger sister Samantha (currently a senior at Musk), and younger brother Eddie, a recent 3rd place graduate of Fairfield Prep. We have received strong support from Overall victory at the Hartford Marathon.
“He’s a graduate student at Shudai. I’m proud of him,” Tristin said of his brother.
Tristin’s mother encouraged her to enter the Miss Rhode Island pageant.
“My mom sent me an application and said, ‘You should do this.’ This is a great opportunity for you,” Tristin said. “I looked it up and it looks really good. I thought pageants were about wearing pretty dresses and judging who looked the most beautiful, but this pageant is about building confidence and self-esteem in women. We focus on that.”
“I went to the orientation before the pageant and everyone was so nice and lifted each other up,” she added. “Honestly, this book really puts everything in perspective for me, especially as a college senior. There are so many other problems going on in the world and I don’t want to focus on things that don’t make me happy. This pageant makes me happy and I get to meet so many new people.”
compete for a cause
Now, Tristin is trying to collect votes online. There are 48 participants, and the one with the most votes will win the People’s Choice Award and be guaranteed a spot in the semi-finals. She costs $1 per vote and can cast a minimum of 5 votes at a time.
People can vote until the pageant takes place on Saturday, May 25th at the Rhode Island Convention Center.
All Miss Rhode Island contestants advocate for a cause, and the winner spends the next year participating in that cause for as long as they wish. For example, previous winners advocate for mental health awareness.
When people vote for their favorite contestant online, a portion of the proceeds will support the winner’s cause. Tristin’s cause is the education of gifted children.
Tristin said each participant must raise a minimum of $1,000 worth of sponsorship donations to compete in the contest. The funds will be used for contest entry fees, weekend meals, hair, makeup, costumes, and prizes for the winners.
If you would like to donate, you can send money directly to Julia Tristine (@juliatristine) on Venmo and she will send it to the contest headquarters.
Tristin recalled one supporter walking up to her at a Red Sox game during Senior Week, telling her how proud he was of her and asking how she voted.
“It was really moving,” she said. “Even just one vote helps a lot. I really appreciate it. I don’t think many people would take the time to do it.”
Another supporter is Tristin, an 11-year-old girl she babysits, who came to visit her during her graduation party last Sunday.
“She gave me $20 of her money as a sponsorship because she believed in my cause,” Tristin said of the girl. “I tried not to take the money, but she insisted.”
Tristin said he is grateful for all the support he has received from his hometown and is proud to represent it (he must have been there for at least a year to compete in the Rhode Island pageant). ).
“Monroe is pretty small, and people from Monroe go to cool places, but they don’t necessarily promote where they’re from,” she said, adding that she also thinks it’s important to her to highlight special education.
Tristin said competing in the competition includes a day of interviews, rehearsals, makeup, hair and photo shoots. There is no talent category in the contest. However, all the women practice their dance numbers together at the beginning of the event.
Tristin said the interview will be short and will include questions such as: And who is your hero?
“The interview is for the judges to see your personality and get to know you,” she says. “What they’re looking for is confidence, knowing yourself, speaking well with a clear voice. Posture is also important.”
There are also swimsuit and evening dress contests.
“They say, ‘It doesn’t matter how you dress; it’s the woman inside the dress that matters,'” Tristin says. “They really focus on that, and I like that.”
Connect on a deeper level
Tristin, who will be working at Little Gun Preschool in Westport, has already gained a lot of experience as a student teacher in Rhode Island.
“I learned about patience,” she said. “I was never good at it. I try to be very patient and never raise my voice against my students because you never know what their home situation is like.”
Tristin taught special education students at Lippitt Elementary School in Warwick, Rhode Island, but “I worked in a co-ed classroom,” she said.
Tristin said half of the class includes students with learning disabilities who are on individualized education programs (IEPs), and the other half are general education students.
“I got to know all of those kids, and I was technically responsible for half of them,” she said. “I could see all kinds of behaviors. My teacher was great, both teachers I worked with were great.”
“In my training at Barnes, the special education teachers took students out of the classroom to help them,” Tristin said.
Providence requires all teachers to be certified in both general education and special education. Tristin says she learned a lot about special education at her first job at Times Squared Academy in Providence.
“I have ADHD and OCD, so I can empathize with those kids,” she said. “There was a kid in Times Square who was having trouble concentrating, and I was able to give her tips and connect with her on a deeper level.”
Tristin said a girl told her she wasn’t taking her ADHD medication, so she shared a strategy she used to stay focused in class when she forgot to take her medication as a child.
She said to the girl: “This helps when it’s hard to pay attention, which often happens. I forget my medicine. But I still have to do my school work.”
“It was special to be able to connect with her like that,” Tristin said.
One of the teachers Tristin worked with had a young girl who had a rough home life, so she would do her hair every day to make her feel special.
“I asked if I could do her hair,” Tristin said. “Every day I would look for a different hairstyle and try it on me and then try it on her. So she always had great hair. I worked with her for a month and When I was on the other side of the rest area, she would run as fast as she could and hug me.”
Tristin also remembers a little boy who was upset about having to wear braces. Tristin told him how much attention he got when he got braces growing up, and that they came in a variety of colors to choose from.
“His mother said, ‘Thank you.’ He didn’t want braces, but he’s very happy with it now,” Tristin recalled.
Tristin said throughout her experience she has worked with “amazing teachers who care about kids.”
“Education is so important, especially special education,” she said. “Even if they don’t get into special education, I always advocate for it. I speak for those students. They don’t always have the best home life. In some cases, parents may not be able to accept that the child has autism.
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