Lindenwood Magazine - Fall 2018: Connecting to Alumni and Friends

Lindenwood University / CAMPUS NEWS LINDENTEACH PROGRAM PROVIDES REAL EXPERIENCE by BRIAN VORCE Students in Lindenwood University’s School of Education are getting classroom experience and getting paid through the new LindenTeach program. LindenTeach, which began this year, places education students in local schools as substitute teachers, while the students also work with mentor teachers. The students are paid by the district for their substitute work. Currently, Lindenwood has a partnership with Orchard Farm School District, where LindenTeach students work in the high school, middle school, or two grade schools. Dr. Melissa Daniel, executive director of student services at Orchard Farm, said finding dependable substitute teachers can be a challenge. “One of the things we are always doing as administrators is trying to recruit the best teachers to work with our students,” said Daniel. “It’s vitally important that the learning continues for the students. It’s so much more important to have someone in there who understands children and understands education and can continue that learning.” Katie Gierer, a secondary education major and LindenTeach participant, works in the high school every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday as a substitute teacher or helping her mentor teacher. “I’m doing this LindenTeach program because it seems like a really great way to get experience but still have a mentor there to guide me,” Gierer said. “My mentor teacher shows me the ropes of the school and I do any errands or jobs she needs, and it gets me acclimated to the environment of being in a school every day.” Dr. Amanda Aldridge, assistant professor of teacher education and the LindenTeach administrator, said the program is proving to be mutually beneficial for both Lindenwood students and Lindenwood’s K-12 district partners. “Districts are able to maintain high-quality substitute teachers that are reliable and dependable, and Lindenwood students are provided with additional opportunities to apply knowledge and strategies in an authentic setting while receiving coaching and feedback from a Lindenwood faculty member as well as a district mentor,” Aldridge said. Dr. Jenn Wilhelm, assistant principal at Orchard Farm High School, said the LindenTeach substitutes are like faculty, attending staff meetings and professional development. She said she hopes they get a realistic view of what it’s like to be a teacher, and she hopes they continue to be positive influences that the students need. “The students jumped right in and really have hit the ground running,” Wilhelm said. “When they are subbing for the day, they’re running the class. They’re the ones who are in charge. They are the adult in the room for our kiddos.” Gierer, who wants to be a high school English teacher, said she hopes to student-teach in the Orchard Farm district. “It’s basically a year-long interview,” Daniel said. “As positions open up, it would be that natural progression that we would consider them for a position because we know them better than somebody on paper.” Daniel also said she understands that college can be difficult financially for some people, and she hopes the substitute teacher pay can help students support themselves as they attend college. Dr. Greg Jones, Orchard Farm High School principal, said Lindenwood and Orchard Farm have maintained a strong partnership during his 19 years with the district. “I think this is a wonderful program,” Jones said. “It prepares the Lindenwood students to really see the inner workings of a school and what the day-to-day life of a teacher really is, and from our standpoint it’s absolutely wonderful because it helps fill a need that we have–that a lot of schools have–in filling substitute positions. It’s really a win-win for both of us.” “I’m doing this LindenTeach program because it seems like a really great way to get experience but still have a mentor there to guide me.” Katie Gierer LINDENWOOD / FALL 2018 4 Hannah Simorka