教育 grad named Teacher of the Year thanks Polk State for “all they invested in me”

希瑟Kunze says she wanted to be a teacher as long as she could remember, but it wasn’t until her thirties that she “finally decided to buckle down and do this for myself – for my family.”

现在她才入行两年, she has been named Teacher of the Year at Floral Avenue Elementary and says the greatest reward is witnessing the growth in her fourth-grade reading students.

“最好的部分是能够和我的学生一起庆祝, 让他们看到他们的课堂和成功被庆祝,昆泽说。, 毕业于 澳门新葡京博彩基础教育理学学士学位 2022年计划. “To be acknowledged for my efforts so early on in my career encourages me to work even harder and reminds me that I am on the right track.”

Kunze married and had children young, which resulted in her education being put on the “back burner.当她得知 澳门新葡京博彩的教育项目, the idea of going back to school started to seem more attainable. Polk State is the only public post-secondary institution in Polk County offering state-approved teacher education preparation programs.

“它是本地的，而且价格合理，”她说. “当我做研究的时候, 我意识到这对我和我的家庭都有用, 所以我就跳了进去.”

Despite having a 1- and 3-year-old at home during the COVID-19 public health emergency, 昆泽认为这个项目是“可行的”.”

“It was intimidating at first because I had been out of the college setting for a long time, 但课程作业是可控的, 教授们总是愿意帮忙,”她说。. “The program was rigorous enough to prepare me for my job as an educator but accomplishable enough for me to manage being a stay-at-home mom with my coursework.”

“I felt that from the beginning, I had what I needed to be successful.”

鼓舞人心的增长

澳门新葡京博彩的教育项目 has a large focus on field experiences and internships in Polk County Public Schools, providing students with ample time in local classrooms with mentor teachers to prepare them to lead their own future classrooms.

Kunze said this not only opened her eyes to the challenges of the job but also provided her with the tools and insight to overcome them.

“I was able to see firsthand how the teacher I was working alongside would remediate issues in her classroom. I picked up on those methods and could see what tools I would want to utilize in my own classroom.”

“I was able to see firsthand how the teacher I was working alongside would remediate issues in her classroom. I picked up on those methods and could see what tools I would want to utilize in my own classroom,她解释道. “这也让我有机会和学生们在一起. 他们并不总是准备好学习. I was able to see how teachers handle that – how they manage their students and their classrooms and utilize best practices.”

Polk State 教育 developed its built-in measurements for state-mandated standards in collaboration with Polk County Public Schools, 波尔克县最大的雇主. More than 167 graduates from the 波尔克州教育计划 are currently teaching in nearly 60 Polk County Public Schools. Others are in private schools, other districts, or out of state.

Floral Avenue Elementary is a Title I school and the only public elementary school in 巴托.

“来找我们的孩子来自不同的背景，”她说. “他们都有独特的需求，没有两个学生是相同的.”

“The most rewarding part of my job is to see students who didn’t even speak English at the beginning of the school year start to utilize vocabulary words that, 在某些情况下, 其他学生甚至还没有使用,昆泽说。. “看到他们的成长令人鼓舞.”

改变世界

She credits part of her success to the foundation she gained through the 波尔克州教育计划.

“Being named Teacher of the Year made me feel worthy and prideful about coming from 澳门新葡京博彩,昆泽说。. “Getting to honor the program in that way means a lot to me because I am indebted to them for all they have invested in me.”

She added that the 波尔克州教育计划 is a tight-knit community of passionate educators – from the professors to the students to the mentor teachers through Polk County Public Schools. They remain connected to this day, and she says she can call on them for help if she ever needs it.

“Being named Teacher of the Year made me feel worthy and prideful about coming from 澳门新葡京博彩. Getting to honor the program in that way means a lot to me because I am indebted to them for all they have invested in me.”

2024年, 三名毕业生——特蕾西·加西亚, 希瑟Kunze, 和雷——在他们的学校被评为年度最佳教师. Current student Julia Barnett was also recognized as School-Related Employee of the Year.

“You don’t feel like another student on the roster – you feel like someone who is being fostered and nurtured into becoming a great educator,”她说。. “Polk State creates teachers who are effective leaders in their classrooms.”

Kunze will transition to Willow Oak School in Mulberry for the 2024-2025 school year. 她的年度最佳教师称号和澳门新葡京博彩的教育, 她对即将进入第三年的教学生涯充满信心.

“Going to Polk State was the best decision I ever made because I felt right away that not only could I succeed, 但我也可以享受我正在学习的东西,昆泽说。. “That’s why we want to be educators in the first place – we want people to enjoy learning.”

“Thanks to Polk State, I felt that I was set up for success from the very beginning. 我没有在毕业后跳进未知的世界. I had the tools to start making a difference right away,”她说。. 虽然毕业永远是最终目标, it’s the goodness in the middle that makes your degree meaningful. 这就是为什么我很自豪能成为波尔克州立教育的毕业生.”