Schools often hold signings for students who are going on to play sports at the college level. But this week, Nixa Public Schools held a signing for students planning to become teachers.
Stephanie Pycior brought the students up one by one to talk about their time in the teaching program at Nixa and share what their future plans are. They then signed a document, many surrounded by family. She said she’s glad to be able to celebrate future educators.
"Why hold this? Why not hold this? I feel like we are able to celebrate the athletes and all those kids that have worked really hard," she said. "These kids have worked so hard in the classrooms, and they are so excited to go further in that career, and we want to celebrate that as people that are in the career ourselves, we want to celebrate our own."
Nixa Public Schools offers a program called Educators Rising, which includes curriculum, competitions and networking. There’s also a teaching academy course, which Pycior teachers, that allows students to receive college credit. And a teacher cadet program puts students in classrooms across the district so they can learn what it’s like to be a teacher. Pycior calls it a grow-your-own experience.
"We're trying to find out which kids, students in this school, have a heart and a passion, potentially wanting to work with students one day," she said, "that maybe we can figure out and give them the opportunities, cadet experience, practicum experience to work in that field and see if it's something that really fits them and suits them so that maybe one day they can come and work alongside us."
Seniors can sign up for the State of Missouri substitute certification course. If they pass that, they may go to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to get their substitute teacher certification and earn money in college by subbing.
Taryn Luttrull is a Nixa senior who plans to become an art teacher.
"I just really like seeing kids light up when they learn something new," she said, "and art has been the passion all of my life, and I really want to share that with anybody I can."
Fellow student Emma Nguyen wants to be an occupational therapist in a school setting.
"I love working with kids and working in a school, like, school's one of the best places. I love school since I was in kindergarten and I started," she said. "But I just wanted to go, like, be in a place where I knew I could help other people and just make an impact on their life, and OT was also something that I was super passionate about, so combining it and working in a school would be perfect for me."
Pycior said she keeps track of what students end up doing after they leave the district. Some are now back in Nixa in their own classrooms.
Nixa Public Schools Director of Human Resources Mark McGehee talked to the students at the signing this week. He told them, "congratulations to you, and I hope that you are as excited as I was the day I realized, 'you mean, I can go make a career and a living out of teaching?' This was a great realization, and I hope you're as excited as I was about that."
He said students who come back to teach at Nixa and who took the Teaching Academy course, get to start a pay grade above the starting level. Those who did their student teaching at Nixa also get to advance a pay grade. If they did both, they start at level 3.
Pycior summed up the importance of current and future educators to society.
"Teachers are what is creating all of the other professions," she said. "We're here to support all of the families and the students and the community to build our community to be better in the future. And without them, if we were just sticking to online or not getting that personal connection, to me it's everyday those relationships that we build from teachers to students is critical for their soft skills and their communication skills in every profession that they have in the future."
