The six Grow Your Own Pathway to Teaching program participants are Ilana Snapp, from Jefferson High School, Jazlyn Grim, from Washington High School, Kaitlynn Potter, from WHS, Kaleigh Wilson, from WHS, Norah Snyder, from WHS, and Taylor Decker, from WHS. Courtesy photo

SHEPHERDSTOWN – Shepherd University is participating in a pilot program called Grow Your Own Pathway to Teaching through the West Virginia Department of Education, and six Jefferson County high school students are taking advantage of the new opportunity.

The six students, all planning to go into the education field, are taking dual-enrollment classes at Shepherd University, which will allow them to earn both high school and college credits.

“The Grow Your Own Pathway to Teaching program pairs higher education institutions with county school systems to help high school students who are interested in pursuing education careers potentially graduate from college in three years. The Grow Your Own Pathway program’s goal is to address the state’s critical teacher shortage,” the official release said.

The six students, as well as Shepherd University Assistant Professor of Education Jason Allen, who is working directly with the six students, talked about the program’s progress and for the future.

“I think the program is critical in order to strengthen the bonds/partnerships between the counties and universities. Jefferson County has been a wonderful partner in this process, and the Grow Your Own program is allowing both the Shepherd University School of Education and Jefferson County Public Schools to build on an already long and established relationship,” Allen said.

He expressed that the program, so far, is going great.

“Shepherd University could not have asked for a better group of students for this initial Grow Your Own cohort. They are active in classroom discussion and really have tried to look at content from the lens of an educator,” Allen said.

Ilana Snapp, from Jefferson High School, Jazlyn Grim, from Washington High School, Kaitlynn Potter, from Washington High School, Kaleigh Wilson, from Washington High School, Norah Snyder, from Washington High School, and Taylor Decker, from Washington High School, are pleased to be a part of the program and expressed their passion for the profession.

“I want to become a teacher because of how much I enjoy music. I want to go into music education to pursue my love of music and hopefully share it with others,” Snapp said.

Grim has grown up in a family of teachers, which drives the passion for her.

“I’ve always had an interest in it. I’m always looking for a way to help kids and love the fact of being able to do crafts and decorate a classroom,” Grim said.

Potter’s passion comes from the desire to provide a good influence for those who need it.

“I want to become a teacher so that I can be an influence and model to children that need one. Every child deserves a person to care, teach and love them, and I am more than willing to do that,” Potter said.

Wilson has a passion for all children and is looking forward to using the program to further her goals for becoming an educator.

“I want to make sure not just special needs kids get the treatment they need, but kids in general are taken care of, and I want to be an adult they can trust and come to if they ever need anything,” Wilson said.

Decker, like the others in the program, want to make a positive difference.

“I want to become a teacher, because I love kids, and I want to have a positive impact on them every day, if possible,” she said.

“It used to be the main fields we had teacher shortages in were math and science, but now, we have them all fields,” said Shepherd School of Education Director Dori Hargrove in the official release. “We need people who have a passion for teaching and who want to give back to the community.”

Like most school systems across the state, Jefferson County struggles to find qualified teachers to fill its classrooms.

“Currently, Jefferson County is experiencing a shortage of certified teachers,” said Samantha Viands, Jefferson County Schools certification and recruitment coordinator, in the release. “We have an excess of 75 positions currently filled by permanent substitutes.”

Viands expressed excitement in the release that Jefferson County is one of 29 counties in West Virginia participating in the program.

“Two of our biggest recruitment tools are our community and our location,” Viands said. “The Grow Your Own program builds up this by growing teachers from our community.”

According to the release, under the program, students in their junior or senior year of high school can begin taking advanced placement and/or dual enrollment courses that would meet the requirements for a degree in teaching. The program requires students to take a minimum of 24 credits. Twelve of those credits are core curriculum classes, and 12 are foundational education courses.

“If a student starts in their junior year, by the time they graduate high school, they would have at least 20 credits. Some would have up to 30 credits and be able to enroll as a sophomore at a university,” Hargrove said. “Candidates receive continuous coaching and mentoring. Research suggests it’s that coaching and mentoring that’s essential to retaining the candidates even after they graduate.”

In addition, the Grow Your Own program covers the cost of tuition for the required education classes and the cost of the Praxis test, which students are required to pass for teacher certification. It also gives students classroom experience before graduating from high school. Once they are seniors in college, they are eligible to be paid during their student teaching experience.

“It’s a great program,” said Barbara Kandalis, Shepherd’s coordinator for dual enrollment. “West Virginia definitely needs more teachers, and it encourages them to stay within the state.”

Kandalis said the Grow Your Own program gives students the opportunity to determine if they want to pursue a career in education before enrolling in college.

“Taking a couple of education courses and getting your feet wet can open your eyes to whether you really want to be a teacher,” Kandalis said. “The dual enrollment program is very conducive to doing that no matter what career a student is interested in.”