34 | Education: Texas A&M University; American College of Education | Company: Highland Park ISD
Bridget Myers juggles a variety of competing tasks and priorities, a balancing act she began refining early as a waitress at the Purple Cow in Preston Hollow.
“Outside of learning how to carry four cups and several plates at the same time, I also learned how to manage stress, customer service, and how to de-escalate when you accidentally drop an iced tea in someone’s lap,” she said, adding that the iced tea incident only happened once.
In her roles today as Highland Park ISD STEAM lead and a business design and leadership educator in the Moody Advanced Professional Studies program, Myers co-teaches her own classes, works with other classes, and manages extracurriculars including robotics, Destination Imagination, and the Science Fair.
She developed the district’s solar eclipse programming in 2024, has helped create Digitarium programming, and hosts elementary HPISD students for STEAM trips.
“The challenge has been developing efficient processes that actually work at scale,” Myers said. “I need to create things that work well for many different groups now and, if it all goes as planned, will keep working for years to come.”
All but six months of Myers’ own career have been spent in HPISD. She came to the district as an eighth-grade health teacher and coach. Over her 12 years in HPISD, she has taught four grades and four different subjects, and each, she said, has provided her with opportunities to explore new ways of teaching.
“From where I stand, the biggest asset of Highland Park ISD is the many hands that lift up the teachers, students, and staff, the parents who give their time to support the classroom and the extracurriculars,” she said. “When the people around you are excited and interested in the education process and success of each student, it just makes the HPISD teachers’ job — my job — so much easier and joyful.”
What (or who) motivated you to get involved in the community?
Starting my career as a teacher and coach showed me the value of the Park Cities community. From where I stand, the biggest asset of Highland Park ISD is the many hands that lift up the teachers, students, and staff, the parents who give their time to support the classroom and the extracurriculars,” she said. “When the people around you are excited and interested in the education process and success of each student, it just makes the HPISD teachers’ job — my job — so much easier and joyful.
What is your favorite part of your current job or community involvement?
Getting to connect high schoolers with elementary school students is really a special experience. I’d love to get the chance to help more classes collaborate across grades, content, and schools.
Are you where you thought you’d be when you graduated from high school?
I knew I wanted to teach, but I had no idea that I’d be able to both teach and impact STEAM on a larger scale! I’d like to think that my high school self would be proud of both my career longevity and the different projects in which I have been involved.
What was your first job and what did you learn from it?
My first job was in Preston Hollow — waiting tables at Purple Cow when I was a senior at Ursuline. I’ve heard that everyone should wait tables at one point in their life and I wholeheartedly agree. Outside of learning how to carry four cups and several plates at the same time, I also learned how to manage stress, customer service, and how to de-escalate when you accidentally drop an iced tea in someone’s lap (that only happened once). I often think about waiting tables as a high schooler, especially now working with juniors and seniors as they get their first experiences working and volunteering outside of school. I thought I knew what I was doing, and I now realize that the adults around me were exceedingly patient with me and subtly nudged me toward maturity and responsibility.
Was there a “lightbulb moment” that led you to your career? If so, what was it?
Lots of small movements in what I’ve taught have afforded me the opportunity to dip into so many different content areas and topics. I am so grateful for the variety. From teaching and coaching health, to science and engineering, and more recently business, I’ve found that each subject has given me a different lens through which to teach and helped me rely on community experts to lean into new information. STEAM education embodies just that, utilizing cross-curricular information, consulting experts and implementing novel projects that solve real-world problems.
What accomplishment are you the proudest of and why?
I’m proud to be a working, involved mom to two kids. Having an equally hard-working and involved partner makes it even sweeter. Now, I am extra-proud bringing my son as a kindergartener to the district where I’ve spent the majority of my professional career.
Which leadership skills have been the most challenging for you to develop and why?
Being a classroom teacher, my ecosystem was smaller, made up of my students, their families, and my teaching team. Now as STEAM lead, I’ve traded my time from teaching my own students to working with other teachers’ classes and managing extracurriculars like robotics, Destination Imagination, and the science fair. The challenge has been developing efficient processes that actually work at scale. I need to create things that work well for many different groups now and if it all goes as planned will keep working for years to come.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing Dallas right now? If you had the connections and resources to change that, what would you do?
Strengthening the support of our educational system. I think that everyone connected with HPISD knows how lucky we are in all ways, starting with our committed community. If we could replicate the commitment by parents, students, and the community throughout the metroplex, along with the resources, we would set our region up for generations of success.
If someone made a movie about your life, what would it be called and who would play you?
On my best day, I could only wish to be played by Jennifer Garner, who is an excellent actress and seems to be an even better human. I remember some friends texting me in high school that they thought I looked like the ‘mom from Juno’. Even though no high schooler wants to be told they look like a 30-year-old I can finally appreciate the compliment. We’ll call it Life and Education.
What is your favorite local restaurant or shop?
My kids and I love The Toy Maven. They love looking for new toys and I love seeing all the interesting things that companies make for kids now. I wonder, “did they make these when I was a kid?” and “is there anything here I should try to use for a lesson?” It’s a dangerous place for parents if they go in without a plan, and at the same time an excellent place to explore together.
What’s on your bucket list?
I was a Spanish minor in college and spent a summer in Barcelona. I’ve always wanted to be able to take my family back to visit one day and get to revisit something that now seems so long ago. If only my host, my abuelita, Ana, were still alive for us to visit! She was so kind to me and provided the best opportunity for me to immerse myself in Spanish culture.
What do you have in mind for after 40?
As much as I am proud of my professional accomplishments, I am most proud of my family, my growing 5-year-old son Griffin, rambunctious daughter Harper, and supportive partner and husband Connor. I pray Connor’s and my 40s are full of everything you’d envision with older kids/young teenagers — balancing and doing our best at both work and personal life and juggling the delightful chaos that’s yet to come.
Is there anything else you think we should know about you?
Like almost every other person with a microphone in their hands, I tried podcasting my first year as STEAM Lead. I had zero podcasting experience and no media training and somehow squeaked out 16 episodes. I envisioned reaching new teachers in different districts and cities. For the record — podcasting is hard. I would consider STEAMology my proudest failure. I’ve hung up my mic for now, but may take it back up when the time is right.
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