John M. Holland, 38
Child Development Specialist, Richmond Public Schools
As an art student at Virginia Commonwealth University, John Holland didn't see it coming. Shortly after meeting his wife, Jonah, he took a job as a substitute teacher in Richmond to pay the bills. He's been in the classroom ever since.
"It basically came down to start my own house-painting company or teaching," he says, which was an easy choice: "Every interaction with a kid I felt like I was doing something."
