The Southeastern Oklahoma State University department of Educational Instruction and Leadership and the Office of Teacher Education Services will host a pair of Prospective Teacher Academy events in March, exposing high school students to possibilities in the field of education.
The first event will be held on Wednesday, March 5, in Idabel at Southeastern’s McCurtain County campus. The second event will be held on the main campus in Durant on Wednesday, March 12.
Keynote speaker for both events will be Rachel Keith of Ada, the 2024 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year. As the current Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, she hopes to inspire both traditional and non-traditional educators to find their teacher VOICE and raise the impact every teacher has on our state. She believes the best avenue to building strong, influential teachers is through intentional peer mentorships.
In addition to learning about the day-to-day work of teachers, participants will learn about Southeastern’s educator preparation program, the university’s history and traditions, and the requirements to become a teacher.
This will be the fourth year a specific event has been held at the McCurtain County campus for far southeast Oklahoma and southwest Arkansas. This year’s event will be the fifth at the Durant campus.
“This event is vital to the state of Oklahoma and our region, as we continue to work with our partner schools to build a more robust teacher pipeline,” said Dr. Stewart Mayers, chair of the Educational Instruction and Leadership department at Southeastern. “Our university started as a teachers college, and it’s still a vital and important part of our mission to help provide teachers for our area.”
Registration for high school students, teachers, and counselors is open though Friday, February 28, at www.SE.edu/experienceSE.
