Five Outstanding Future Educators to graduate from USI in May

Five University of Southern Indiana students preparing for careers as teachers have been named Indiana Outstanding Future Educators by the Indiana Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (IACTE).

The following students were recognized April 13 at a luncheon in Carmel, Indiana.

- Kasey Conkling of Evansville studies K-12 visual arts education. She is a student teacher at Hebron Elementary School and will graduate cum laude from USI this spring. She is a graduate of Signature School.

- Cynthia Hamon of Evansville is an elementary education major with mathematics and language arts minors. She is student teaching at Delaware Elementary School, and will graduate cum laude from USI this spring. She is a graduate of Harrison High School.

- Kirsten Smock of Dubois, Indiana, is an elementary education major with a minor in early childhood. She is a student teacher at West Terrace Elementary School in Evansville, and will graduate magna cum laude from USI this spring. She is a graduate of Northeast Dubois High School.

- Brittney Stallins of Evansville holds a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from USI and minors in secondary English teaching. She is completing student teaching at Bosse High School, and will receive her teaching license this spring. She is a graduate of Reitz High School.

- Matthew Wilburn of Brownsburg, Indiana, studies middle school and high school mathematics teaching. He is a student teacher at Helfrich Park STEM Academy, and will graduate from USI this spring. He is a graduate of Brownsburg High School.

All five of the students will complete their undergraduate studies in May. They were chosen for the Outstanding Future Educator Award based on recommendations made by faculty in the USI Department of Teacher Education and University supervisors of their student teaching.

"As much as this award represents my work and determination in the classroom setting, it also represents how much I have grown personally over the past semester," Stallins said. "My student teaching semester has been the vital link from my education courses at USI to my future career. Every day I am presented with a new challenge that introduces me to new ideas, greater opportunities, and the development of the tools I need to be a more successful educator."

IACTE is a professional organization of colleges and universities with undergraduate and/or graduate programs to prepare professional educators. It is an affiliate of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE).