49 years of mixing professional life and motherhood: "I behaved as a mother-teacher at home and as a teacher-mother at school", Thérèse Epambo

As part of Women’s Empowerment Month, the editorial team of the Communication Management Directorate (DGC-EPST) met with Ms. Thérèse Epambo Nyabitane, a teacher at Saint-Pierre School in Kinshasa, located in the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in the Kinshasa commune.

A widow, mother of six children today, and a teacher for over 49 years, Thérèse Epambo shares in this interview, conducted on March 7, 2023, how she has managed over the past five decades to harmoniously balance her professional life with her role as a mother, given the responsibilities that entails.

DGC: Where did the idea to become a teacher come from?

Thérèse EPAMBO: I started this career when I was very young. I spent my entire youth in teaching. I discovered that it was my calling and a passion as soon as I was a schoolgirl. During summer break, I used to gather the children and teach them; it was my favorite game or pastime. My greatest inspiration is my first-grade teacher, the late Dominique Ebebele from the Libanda Catholic Mission.

I really admired him as a teacher and mentor; he sparked and nurtured my love for teaching. My uncles, who were teachers, also inspired me. I was very observant of how they lived in their households during our various family visits. And so I chose to pursue a career in education.

DGC: How do you manage to balance family life and your career as a teacher?

T E: It wasn’t easy to balance my family and professional life. I kept everything in order at home, down to the smallest detail. I guided my children as both a teacher and a mother. As a married woman, I made an effort to balance my family and professional life. I took care of my family in every way. I acted as a mother-teacher at home and as a teacher-mother at school.

DGC: Throughout your career, at what grade level did you teach the most?

T E: I have taught at every grade level in elementary school. But in sixth grade, I didn’t really teach—except that I filled in for a sick colleague for three weeks.

Currently, I am a first-grade teacher.

DGC: At which schools have you worked?

T E: My first teaching experience was at a private school called EP Sukami in the town of Kalamu. After the government took over private schools, I was part of the first group of teachers at Kalamu Elementary School, a school located within the Sainte Marie Goretti Parish in the town of Kalamu.

Currently, I have been teaching at Saint Pierre Elementary School for 45 years.

When I first started, I had an average of 60 to 50 students per class. With the proliferation of private schools, we saw the average drop to 35 students. And currently, I have 15 students in my first-grade class.

DGC: With nearly 50 years of teaching under your belt, are you also thinking about retirement?

T E: I do think about it. As a missionary, I’m ready to go whenever I’m sent. But my fear is that certain benefits won’t be in place and that the government won’t honor the retirement terms. I wouldn’t have too many worries in retirement, because I’ll be free to pursue my activities within the church. I won’t miss the children’s various whims. I might end up living far from the children I’ve loved so much.

DGC: Are there any in your family who want to follow in your footsteps in teaching?

T. E: One of my children had pursued a career in education, but unfortunately, he didn’t make it. I have a grandson who is currently doing his teaching internship at a school.

Interview conducted by Glodi Mboma Bokiki