Senior students from Naperville Central High School and Naperville North High School recently signed their commitment as future educators.
“It’s very important for our students to be recognized for their accomplishments. I think it’s important for them to make that commitment and realize the value of education,” said Andrea Szczepanski, the Lead Principal of Educational Innovation and Workforce Development at Naperville Community Unit School District 203.
34 students took part in the “Teacher Signing Day” ceremony at the Naperville Municipal Center.
“It was super exciting to see all my friends up there getting to sign what they worked so hard to achieve,” said A Kozminski, a senior at Naperville North High School. Kozminski committed to studying elementary education with a minor in special education at Loyola University.
Following in the footsteps of favorite teachers
Kozminski says he’s always wanted to be a teacher.
“I had a really great fifth-grade teacher,” said Kozminski. “How she made me feel as a fifth grader is how I want to make other students feel.”
A sentiment shared by other students.
“I’ve always wanted to be an educator. I had a really awesome third-grade teacher, and ever since I had her, I just wanted to be like her and just help people and work with kids,” said Sophie Kakkuri, a senior at Naperville Central High School. Kakkuri signed her commitment to study elementary education at the University of Louisville.
Hands-on teaching experience
The students who participated in the signing day were part of the “Introduction to teaching 2” program, where students got real-world classroom experiences.
“They were able to work alongside a veteran teacher within the district,” said Szczepanski.
This allowed students to practice being an educator.
“I was in kindergarten at Riverwoods with Mrs. Lenz. They truly were just the best class ever. I learned so much. She had such good classroom management skills,” said Kelsey Driscoll, a senior at Naperville Central High School. Driscoll has committed to studying elementary education at the University of Mississippi.
Some students even earned an Illinois diploma endorsement in education.
“They’ve completed six credit hours with the College of DuPage and met all the requirements for that diploma endorsement,” said Szczepanski.
Szczepanski says she hopes to see these future educators again.
“I just want to wish all of our educators the best of luck as they pursue their future and we look forward to hopefully welcoming them back,” said Szczepanski.
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