A year of learning, sharing for Glenwood Springs Middle School’s Autumn Rivera as Colorado’s 2022 Teacher of the Year

Lecturers are devoted professionals, however they’re not robots. And neither are college students.

That was one of many main factors Colorado’s 2022 Instructor of the Yr, Glenwood Springs Center College sixth-grade science trainer Autumn Rivera, emphasised throughout a whirlwind 12 months through which she mentioned she realized as a lot as she was capable of share.

“My largest takeaway is the significance of sharing your story, and that if you get to know another person’s story it humanizes the scenario,” Rivera mentioned in a pre-holiday interview, reflecting again on one of many largest years of her life.

“I really feel like numerous occasions as of late, we’re attempting to show our academics into robots and we’re attempting to show our college students into robots. And we’re not, we’re people,” she mentioned.

“We have to go away from that and humanize the occupation, and to try this we have to share our tales.”

Likewise, college students can study as a lot by sharing their very own tales and life experiences with one another. “I actually suppose that’s what’s going to assist flip us in the appropriate route,” Rivera mentioned.

A trainer’s work isn’t finished, and Rivera’s function as an training chief in Colorado and nationally continues into the New Yr.

Not too long ago, Rivera returned from her third journey to Washington, D.C. in a 12 months, the place she was invited to view a particular scholar self-portrait venture on the White Home.

In October, she and the academics of the 12 months from different states have been requested to have their college students make mini-portraits of themselves, which have been then despatched to the White Home and became Christmas ornaments.

Fifteen of Rivera’s college students participated, and Rivera obtained to see them on show. 

The White Home was adorned with 77 bushes altogether, 4 of which have been coated in scholar paintings. 

“The varsity district (Roaring Fork Re-1) was actually nice and supported me in going to see their paintings,” Rivera mentioned. “I used to be capable of finding the ornaments of six of my college students, and a few of them have been on show within the personal residence, so we couldn’t see all of them.”

Additionally in early December, on the native management entrance, Rivera joined GSMS ELL studying and writing trainer Lucia Campbell and Principal Joel Hathaway, together with a bunch of scholars, in presenting the varsity’s EL Mannequin of Excellence Challenge on the EL Nationwide Convention in Chicago.

As soon as COVID issues subsided final spring, journey for varied conferences and subject journeys turned a serious a part of her function as Instructor of the Yr. 

Extra journeys to the nation’s capital included interviews for Nationwide Instructor of the Yr, for which she was a finalist, and one other time she had the privilege of assembly President Joe Biden and First Girl Jill Biden.

There was additionally a visit to House Camp in Huntsville, Alabama in July, the place academics took half in team-building actions.

“The concept was to take you out of your consolation zone and to strive new issues, which was actually cool as a result of it helped me keep in mind what it’s like for my college students to undergo distinctive conditions and be out of their consolation zone, and to replicate on how I can assist them higher course of issues,” Rivera mentioned. 

Final January, she obtained to attend the faculty soccer championship recreation in Indianapolis. And, varied talking engagements and panel discussions have taken her to Princeton College, New York, Florida, California and a number of occasions all through Colorado. 

This March, Rivera may also be a keynote speaker on the Nationwide Science Instructing Affiliation convention in Atlanta.

All the engagements are a chance for the nation lady who grew up close to Sweetwater Lake to share her distinctive rural Colorado story, and the way she stayed round to do her half to enhance the training expertise for college kids who’re like her when she was in class.

“It’s a narrative that not lots of people get to listen to,” she mentioned. “And it’s an incredible probability to share the superior issues that our college students are doing, and that simply because we’d have much less assets and alternatives than districts in larger cities, we nonetheless do nice issues.”

Like her 2019 venture to have college students study concerning the distinctive ecosystem at Sweetwater Lake and to then write letters in assist of its preservation via the Eagle Valley Land Belief’s Save the Lake marketing campaign. Sweetwater Lake and the encompassing space has since been bought out of personal possession and is now a part of the White River Nationwide Forest holdings. 

“I additionally discuss quite a bit concerning the significance of our neighborhood right here in Glenwood Springs and the Roaring Fork Valley, and the way that actually helps us in constructing the background data to do a venture like that,” she mentioned.

Rivera admits she didn’t absolutely know what she was committing to when she was nominated for Colorado Instructor of the Yr in fall 2021. That was most likely good, she mentioned, as a result of it allowed her to maximise the expertise, and study from it herself.

“I had no thought the quantity of talking that I’d do, or the quantity of interviews and the journey,” Rivera mentioned. “However I’ve gotten comfy with it, and now I can rise up earlier than 2,000 or 3,000 folks and discuss, and that’s regular for me now.”

She mentioned it’s additionally been an opportunity to replicate on who she is as a trainer, and to have a good time being an individual of shade.

“Being a Latina trainer, that’s one thing that after I grew up and graduated from Eagle Valley Excessive College, I by no means had a trainer who appeared like me,” Rivera mentioned. “It’s necessary to me to permit my college students to see examples of Hispanic and Latinx people who find themselves academics and professors and leaders in different conditions, in order that they’ve a wider thought of what they need to be once they develop up.”

This previous fall, Rivera was a part of the interview staff to pick out the 2023 Colorado Instructor of the Yr, Jimmy Day II, who’s a music trainer at East Center College in Aurora, and likewise an individual of shade.

“He’s our first Colorado Instructor of the Yr who’s an exploratory (specials) trainer and our first music trainer. So, it’s thrilling to see us preserve transferring on this various route,” she mentioned.

Long run, Rivera mentioned she hopes to proceed in a management function in Colorado training, particularly because it includes rural science educators.

“I’m excited to simply preserve assembly new folks, and to maintain sharing our story and advocate for rural training, as a result of we actually are doing a little superior issues right here,” she mentioned.

Rivera is in her 18th 12 months as a trainer, and her eleventh at Glenwood Springs Center College.

Put up Impartial interim Managing Editor and senior reporter John Stroud will be reached at jstroud@postindependent.com or at 970-384-9160.