Between them, Jeanette Sewell and Wanda Love have been assistant teachers for 12 years in the Greenwood Public School District. Now, with the district’s help, both women have the opportunity to continue their work with kindergartners as certified teachers.
This summer, Sewell and Love, along with 16 other GPSD assistant teachers, attended Tougaloo College’s Rural Teacher Initiative program, a boot camp to prepare them for the Praxis I and Praxis II exams and to pave the way to a master’s degree in teaching program as they secure their state certification.
Both women hold Bachelor of Arts degrees in early childhood education from Mississippi Valley State University.
The school board approved the district’s participation in the Rural Teacher Initiative in May. Mary Brown, director of curriculum, said at that time it would be an opportunity for the district to “grow its own” teachers from inside the district in the midst of a statewide teacher shortage, particularly in rural districts.
The district would pay the assistant teacher’s fees and tuition, Brown said, with reserve funds carried over from previous years.
Eighteen assistant teachers from the district attended orientation in Greenville on May 31 and in June and July attended Praxis training in Moorhead. Once individuals have passed the Praxis exams, they will enter a Masters in Teaching program with Mississippi Valley State University.
Sewell and Love have only completed the first step in the process, but both are confident they have made a good choice. They also are grateful to the district for giving them the opportunity.
“This will really enhance my strategies and skills to be a better teacher,” said Love, who works at Threadgill Elementary School. Love worked with toddlers before coming to Threadgill nearly a decade ago as an assistant kindergarten teacher.
Love said she looks forward to returning to Valley for instruction in the master’s, once she has passed the Praxis exams.
Sewell, who works at Davis Elementary, agreed.
“As assistant teachers, we do many of the same things teachers do,” she said. “We’re just not certified.
“I’m looking forward to being a more effective teacher, and I’m giving it my all because that’s what kids deserve.”
“Valley gave me what I needed when I was an undergraduate,” Sewell said. “Now I’m giving back.”
The training for the Praxis exams was tough, Love and Sewell said, but together with the other teachers, they pulled through.
“We were a team,” said Sewell. “We were there for each other and became like a little supportive family.”
Now they are studying for the Praxis, scheduled for sometime in the upcoming month.
Both women offered special thanks to the board, their principals, Mary Brown and Superintendent Jennifer Wilson for the opportunity and for investing resources in their futures as teachers.
Kindergarten students study phonics, vocabulary, reading, math, science and social studies to prepare them for the early elementary grades, and Sewell and Love hope to set them up for success.
“All kids can learn,” Sewell said, “and we don’t want any kids left behind.”
Love said young children adapt quickly and a big part of her job is to make them comfortable in the school environment. “It’s all about helping the kids,” she said.
In addition to the Rural Teacher Initiative, the district is partnering this year with Delta State University to support all district teachers who desire national board certification.
Fifty-one teachers in the district have signed up to earn their National Board Teaching Certification, a rigorous training program that will result in a $10,000-per-year stipend from the state for the next 10 years for all who complete the program and earn their certification.
Wilson said national certification sets uniform standards with schools across the nation, complements state licensing and fulfills requirements for re-licensure in addition to providing professional and personal development.
The first in-district training session will be held Wednesday and Thursday.
•Contact Kathryn Eastburn at 581-7235 or keastburn@gwcommonwealth.com.
