While Barbie transforms herself from a doctor to teacher to astronaut, CHS9 English I teacher Megan Wells transitions from one career to another, succeeding in all.
Wells embodies someone who can do it all: teaching, winning beauty pageants, cheerleader coaching and owning a counseling business, Eras Counseling.
With 11 years in education – eight as a teacher and three as a counselor — Wells’s passion for helping students is evident in her classroom and as a coach. Wells creates a genuine, positive atmosphere fostering students to be their best.
“I think that Mrs. Wells will really take any time necessary to help us and make sure we are where we need to be,” freshman cheer captain Sophia Benge said. “She’s always offering to help people if they need help with something.”
Growing up in Tomball, Texas, Wells graduated from Texas A&M in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in English literature. Upon graduation, she explored opportunities at numerous places before realizing she wanted to continue her education in counseling, and graduated from University of Houston in 2017 with a master’s degree in school counseling.
“I went into the corporate world out of college, but realized I really didn’t like any of the jobs I was qualified to get,” Wells said. “When I was going through my own mental health struggles, I had a therapist who was just very influential on me and I thought if I could do that for anybody in my future, my whole life would have purpose,”
Wells founded Eras Counseling LLC and has been a licensed professional for five years, helping people with mental disorders such as depression, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. Wells was inspired by her love of singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and The Eras Tour, representing the different ‘eras’ people go through in their lives.
“I felt like Eras Counseling was a dual fold because I founded it around the time of the Eras tour,” Wells said. “It also was because people go through so many eras of their life and I love seeing people throughout different life stages.”
As Wells invests in teens’ lives, she also chooses to be an Honors English teacher and a cheer coach to the freshman cheer team. Wells started dancing at age 3, assisting her when she began coaching cheerleading.
“I made really good friends with the head varsity cheer coach at one of my schools and she needed an assistant,” Wells said. “Even though I haven’t cheered before, I’ve danced and I really enjoyed it.”
Wells’s passion for dance is not just a hobby but is also showcased when she competes in pageants. Wells has competed in around 40 pageants since she first started at 19. She has competed for more than 15 years and has won numerous titles, such as Universal Royalty Pageant, Ms. Great Plains 2010, Ms. Tarrant County 2011, Ms. Plano 2013, Miss Texas International, Miss Texas America and Miss Texas Regency International twice.
To Wells, the crown she receives is only one part of what pageants mean to her but it is the opportunity to let her voice be heard. She uses her platform to share her story, raise awareness and make a difference. Wells advocates for mental health, letting everyone know that they all have fair chances. She supports mental health walks with the National Alliance for Mental Health and advocates for organ donation.
“Pageants give me the platform to talk to people in a way that matters,” Wells said. “Because for some reason when you put a crown on your head, people listen and it gives you that ability to say ‘I’m no one special, but I have something to say and this is something that matters and this is something the world needs to take note of.”
Wells not only shines in her own pageants but also dedicates herself to mentor girls through their own pageant journey. By sharing her knowledge, experience and advice, she helps teens prepare for competitions. She thinks educators can have a lasting impact, and having a lifelong difference through helping someone is what drives Wells’ passion.
“There are a lot of people that I have taught that have saved my life and I feel like that’s just such a cool thing that teaching can do,” Wells said. “You have that power to either be in someone’s life as just a blink and someone that they forget or you can make a lasting impact and be a part of someone’s life forever.”
By treating her students with respect and compassion, Wells fosters an environment motivating students to work harder.
“She treats us like we are her children sometimes,” freshman Valerie Rivera said. “It is a good thing because it helps us trust her and makes us want to put more effort into our work, making us the best version of ourselves.”
Whether in the classroom, on the cheerleading team or mentoring pageant contestants, Wells prides herself on making a difference to the people around her. Wells prioritizes leaving a meaningful impact on everything she does.
“She’s very successful in a lot of different areas,” Benge said. “It actually really inspires me to want to grow up and be like her.”
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