Justine Yanosik

1. What is your educational background and what positions have you held?

I graduated from Slippery Rock University in May of 2020 with a B.S in Mathematics Education and a minor in Elementary School Math. While at Slippery Rock I was actively involved on campus. I was a member of the Marching Pride, Pre-Service Teachers of Mathematics Club, President of Kappa Delta Pi, and had the opportunity to serve as an Orientation Ambassador. Upon graduation, I accepted a position at Fort Cherry Jr./Sr. High School as a Long Term Mathematics Substitute.

2. Name one SRU experience, in general or specific to the field, that you will never forget and explain why.

A once in a lifetime opportunity that I will never forget is traveling to Ireland with the SRU Marching Pride and not only competing in Dublin’s St. Patrick’s day parade, but also winning Best Overall Band. The experience abroad itself was incredible, but being able to spend it doing something I enjoy so much made it unforgettable.

3. Name an SRU faculty that had a positive influence on you and explain why.

Dr. Tours will forever hold a special place in my heart. She truly cares about each of her students and will take the time to sit and talk through any stressor you may have. She challenges her students because she sees potential in them, even when they don’t see it in themselves. She truly puts her students before herself and pushes them to be the best educator they can be.

4. What initially peaked your interest in pursuing a degree in education?

Being an educator is in my blood. Ever since I was younger, I have always been the person all of my friends would go to for homework help, especially when it came to math.

5. What is the most rewarding aspect of your job? 

Being an educator is rewarding in every aspect, especially when it comes to seeing students succeed in something they first thought was impossible.

6. What makes a great teacher?

A great teacher is eager, not only to teach but to give their students room to learn. They are passionate, about both their subject and their students. They are engaging and flexible, especially in the world of education we are currently living in. Most importantly though, teachers are personable and show students that it’s okay to make mistakes because that’s how we learn.

Aubrey Frye

1. What is your educational background and what positions have you held? 

I studied early childhood education and Spanish at Slippery Rock and recently graduated this past spring. At Slippery Rock, I completed my student teaching in a general education first grade classroom in Butler Area School District for 12 weeks. The last 4 weeks of my student teaching I completed in Dublin, Ireland in a second grade general education classroom. Right after graduation I started as a PCA for Mt. Lebanon's Summer Enrichment Program where I assisted in a first grade classroom and worked specifically with students with IEP's. This school year I accepted a long-term subbing position teaching High School Spanish 2 and Honors 2 at Penn Trafford High School in Harrison City.

 

2. Name one SRU experience, in general or specific to the field, that you will never forget and explain why.

The experiences I will never forget from SRU were my study abroad experiences. I know that with COVID it might be a while until SRU students are able to travel again, but I really feel that traveling with the programs at SRU really helped me learn more about teaching in other countries and helped me gain cultural experiences I would have never had without SRU. I would definitely recommend traveling and experiencing as much as you can during your time at SRU because it truly is worth it!

3. Name an SRU faculty that had a positive influence on you and explain why.

The faculty member that had a positive influence on my time at SRU was Dr. Sara Tours. Dr. Tours was my advisor for the last 2 years at Slippery Rock, she was my supervisor for student teaching, and she was the professor that took me on two of my abroad experiences; Spain and Ireland. Dr. Tours always went out of her way to help me with anything I needed at SRU, whether it was education related or not. She really cares about the success of her students and she is very well educated in the field of education. She is happy to help anyone with whatever they need at SRU!

 

4. What initially peaked your interest in pursuing a degree in education?

My initial interest in education came from my background in dance. I started co-teaching dance when I turned 13. Since then, I have co-taught and taught many levels and ages of dance. During my time teaching dance in high school, I realized that teaching is something I am passionate about and I want to share my knowledge with other people. I also chose to pursue a Spanish degree to be able to teach Spanish. I chose to do this because I had an amazing high school Spanish teacher that really inspired me to want to learn and love the Spanish language and culture. In my current position, I am able to teach high schoolers Spanish and share my love of the language and culture with other people.

5. What do you love most about teaching?

The thing I love most about teaching is how rewarding it feels seeing your students succeed. In both teaching dance and teaching early childhood and Spanish, it is incredible to see students' growth throughout the year. I always love when you have a student who is struggling, and finally they have that "aha moment" when they find success. It makes everything worth it!

6. What makes a great teacher?

I believe that a great teacher is one that is willing to step outside of the box, try new things, and continually change and accommodate their lessons for their students. Really getting to know your students on a personal level and knowing about their interests separates a good teacher from a great teacher. Great teachers are always willing to change and modify their lessons based on the needs of their students, and to be able to better capture their students' attention and help them succeed in every aspect of life. Great teachers never give up and never stop modifying and updating their teaching techniques!

Sammie Walker Herrera

 

1. What is your educational background and what positions have you held?

I graduated with my Master's in Student Affairs in Higher Education from the SRU Department of Counseling and Development. Prior, I had studied at Carnegie Mellon University where I earned two Bachelors of Arts degrees, one in Psychology and the other in Hispanic Studies. During my career, I have worked in diversity & inclusion, nonprofit association management, professional staff training, and clinical outpatient support, at various institutional types including mid-size public, Research 1 (R1), small Liberal Arts, and now a large, public R1. Currently, I work as a Career Coach at the University of Florida Career Connections Center (C3) in Gainesville, FL and advise students in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). UF is the #7 top public schools in the nation according to the U.S. News & World Report ranking and our work in the C3 directly supports student outcomes that influence this ranking. 

2. Name one SRU experience, in general or specific to the field, that you will never forget and explain why.

I will never forget resurrecting one of the CDEV traditions for a year, our in-house professional development conference. As President of our Student Affairs Graduate Association (SAGA), our team worked hard to coordinate sessions, encourage students to submit programs, organize the schedule of events, and even hire SRU alumna and superstar, Elise Michaux, to take headshots. It was an awesome opportunity to see what knowledge our peers wanted to share and help them get their toes in the water to present at regional and national conferences in the future.

3. What advice would you give to current students who are enrolled in the teacher preparation program at SRU?

I advise graduate students in education to really look out for opportunities to build experience during your program. There are so many scholarships, internships, and volunteer opportunities that only exist for graduate students, so take the time during a lull in the program to see what opportunities your faculty know of and what's out there through an internet search. For example, I served as a Graduate Association for NASPA, the largest Student Affairs association internationally, an opportunity only open to Master's and doctoral students. This will help differentiate you in a competitive job market. More importantly, you learn about yourself and make lifelong friendships that propel you past your first entry-level job and into a career you're proud of.

4. What initially peaked your interest in pursuing a degree in education?

My undergraduate university didn't have an education department, but if it had, I would have been the first student enrolled! I was trying to find myself in experimental psychology or cognitive science but those weren't social enough areas for me. I did take one education course in undergrad on how K-12 students learn English, math, and writing and though I knew I didn't want to work in K-12, I was hooked to these principles of teaching and learning and started applying them to my own studying. I knew then that I had been an educator the whole time (as a career services peer mentor) and that I could only keep growing my skills.

5. What do you love most about teaching?

I love how personal teaching is. Even when teaching a group of 5 or a seminar with 200 students, I find it so fun and rewarding to learn student stories and help them tell these to others. I try to share more about my identity and my career journey so that if something resonates with another, they can feel confident reaching out to me and knowing I have shared experience. You have to be you to teach.

6. What makes a great teacher?

A great educator is a person who is well-trained in human development and able to navigate many roles: advisor, supervisor, mentor, role model, engaged community member, and higher education advocate.

Ashley Samluk

 

1. What is your educational background and what positions have you held?

I attended SRU for 4 1/2 years and majored in Secondary Education (English). After I graduated in December of 2016, I moved back to my hometown, Erie, Pennsylvania, and began long term subbing in a local school district right away. In the meantime, I decided to pursue my master's degree at Edinboro University. I still wanted to stick to English-based content, so I decided to enroll in their Reading program to be a certified Reading Specialist. While working towards my master's degree, I was hired full time at the high school that I attended and graduated from in 2012, which is also where I work now, McDowell High School. I teach at the 9th and 10th grade building, specifically teaching 9th grade English. I also have the privilege of serving as the assistant coach to the varsity softball team at McDowell. I recently finished my Reading Specialist program and will be starting my third year at McDowell. I am STILL absolutely overjoyed I get to teach and coach in such an amazing district!

2. Name one SRU experience, in general or specific to the field, that you will never forget and explain why.

In addition to being an education major, I was an athlete and played softball during my four years at SRU. While managing both my academic and athletic schedules was pretty stressful, I wouldn't have traded those four years for the world. The people I met while on that journey are still some of my best friends and mentors and I continue to stay in touch with them to this day. 

3. What advice would you give to current students who are enrolled in the teacher preparation program at SRU?

Be fearless. I struggled with this a lot going through college, especially when I started field work and student teaching. At first, I really doubted myself and my knowledge, or if I really was ready to actually teach. The truth is, I feel everyone has their doubts about themselves in some way, but in order to overcome those doubts and fears, we have to face them and tackle them head on. Being fearless, especially in this field, is such an important trait to embody because a lot of people (especially students) depend on you and look to you for guidance and support.

4. What initially peaked your interest in pursuing a degree in education?

Ever since I was little, I remember my sister and I playing "school" in our basement. My parents were always very supportive of us playing and even bought us a big white board, supplied us with markers, pens, pencils, paper, you name it! We would even go as far as making up tests. As mean as this sounds though, I always made the argument that because I was older, I always had to be the teacher and she always had to be the student with the ten other stuffed animal "students". I always had a passion for helping and teaching people, so when decision time came to pick a major, it was pretty easy!

5. What do you love most about teaching?

The most amazing aspect of being a teacher is the relationships I get to make and keep with my students. It is really cool to see former students who I had a year or two ago pop into my room just to say hi and catch up, tell me something exciting that happened to them, or talk to me about their game the night before and how they scored a goal. Those positive adult connections truly do mean a lot to young adults and it's really fun to see them grow up and mature through their high school years. 

6. What makes a great teacher?

Authenticity. I think students, especially older students, appreciate when teachers are genuine and can legitimately depend on them. Half the battle of forming a relationship with ANY type of student is showing them that teachers and students are on the same team and that we are in this together.