Early College EAST High School

I am Melissa Matyjasik Parsons. I joined Early College EAST in August 2021.  After earning a Bachelor of Science in English Education from East Carolina University in 1999, I chose to stay at ECU and earn my Master of Arts degree in English as well.  I immediately took a position as a full-time teaching instructor at ECU, where I stayed for 16 years.  During that time, I managed to work as a part-time instructor at Pitt Community College for 10 years.  I also got married and had 3 beautiful boys who are each amazing. 

I absolutely love it here at ECE and want all our students to succeed in whatever aspirations they have.  I am totally a mom-ish kind of teacher.  I currently advise the yearbook staff and the prom committee.  In class, I try to pick a variety of texts to read to interest students and help them think critically.  My favorite authors are Neil Gaiman (always) and Adam Nevill (for right now). I focus on formal writing for both academic and professional audiences, so students can adapt to whatever they need in the future.  I also love research.  It is amazing how much information there is in the world and I only know a tiny grain.  I will never finish learning.  Although many students claim to hate reading and want to focus on "stuff they like," I hope my enthusiasm for all kinds of knowledge can rub off and I can show them that, as long as they can read, they can learn.

Courses 

All class information, including schedules and assignments, is on the Class Canvas pages. 

English II - World Literature 

English III - American Literature