DESCRIPTION:

Positive teacher role models are one of the main reasons young adults choose to pursue a career in education. All of America is feeling the effects of teacher shortages today - especially rural schools. If you are passionate about working as a school professional, and want to instill the same passion in your students, but aren’t quite sure how to start, this session will present you with a step-by-step framework to implement as many pieces of this program as you would like within your own school. The Wisconsin Well Be’s is a four district consortium located in rural south central Wisconsin, dedicated to increasing student interest in, and awareness of, the myriad possibilities of fulfilling professions in education. Rural communities already have limited funding: that is why this session is aimed at small, rural districts who want to start and grow their own Educators Rising chapter, and then go even further. Take away ready- to-use resources, tips, bulletin board images, calendars, field trip suggestions, guest speaker question stems, a student teaching and peer mentor framework, and other hands-on activities that were piloted and successfully implemented in a small, rural district. We will also discuss how Institutes of Higher Education can partner with rural schools to help inspire and support students.

Participants will take away:

• Framework to begin your own Future Educators Club, how to partner with Educators Rising on a state and national level

• Tips for leveraging work as a consortium

• Strategies to implement this in your rural school and community