11 minute read
Building Community: The Legacy of Dr. Harry Stephens
Building Bridges
A “dream” mentorship project becomes an invaluable learning experience
Lauren Taphorn knows exactly what she wants to do for her career. Now a senior elementary education and Spanish double-major pursuing an ESL certification, she is passionate about Spanish language instruction and hopes it will always be a part of her work as an elementary educator. Emporia Spanish Speakers was in need of someone just like Lauren. Founded in 2017 to help facilitate Spanish language learning to non-Spanish speakers, the organization’s director, Lelan Dains (BS 08-Recreation), says, “Our mission is to broaden understanding and tolerance of diverse communities by expanding one's knowledge of language and culture.” Since its formation, the organization has provided learning opportunities to adults. The organization is now expanding their offering so local children can learn Spanish and develop an understanding of the many Spanish language cultures represented in Emporia. Says Dains, “That was a big part of wanting to provide an offering for the youth in our community. I believe it is important for all people to have a basic understanding of other languages and cultures. The goal was for the students to come out of this program with a greater knowledge of different Latin cultures and to be able to speak some basic phrases in Spanish.” In late 2019, Dains approached Dr. Sara Schwerdtfeger (BSE 98-Elementary Education, MS 06-Master Teacher), associate professor and department chair of Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education and Special Education, to help him find the ideal instructor to build this course. Schwerdtfeger reached out to her colleagues in The Teachers College to see who would be an ideal fit, and that’s where she learned about Lauren.
“Immediately, I said yes. I did not even hesitate, because that is literally my dream job,” says Lauren. For Lauren, this opportunity meant building a class from scratch, an incredibly hands-on, intensive and valuable project for an up-andcoming educator. “I worked with Dr. Schwerdtfeger, and we made it a mentorship project through the Honors College. We decided that we were going to have a 10-week class for one hour a week, and we were going to open it up to elementary students aged kindergarten through fifth grade.” “I was in charge of creating the curriculum, as well as all of the lessons, materials and planning. With the help of Dr. Schwerdtfeger, Lelan Dains and my friend, Gillian Ferrel, we created a schedule of classes and the topic for each class. I then started planning out my lessons. Once we had all of that complete, we set a schedule for the classes.” They named the course Los Puentes (Bridges). Lauren ended up with 18 students enrolled in the class. They represented every grade from kindergarten through fifth grade, which created interesting challenges for the young educator. “It made planning and teaching difficult because the abilities and comprehension levels between those ages are vast. But, it was so much fun.” “My goal for the class, the purpose I had in my mind, was not that the students would become fluent. Obviously, I can't do that in one hour for 10 weeks. My main goal was just to expose them to the Spanish language and spark an interest in the culture.” She created an engaging series of experiences for her students, complete with guest speakers, where they traveled in their imaginations to other countries, learning about the culture, the food and the language along the way. “I created little passports for everyone in the class. I took their pictures and put them in the passports for them. They got to fill out the passports with their name and birthday. They thought that was super fun. Then, they would write one thing that they learned about that country in their passport and draw a picture related to it.” Los Puentes began in early February with a scheduled final class planned as a ‘graduation’ on Cinco de Mayo. In 2020. You can guess what happened next. “We had our first three classes, and then it was spring break. Then, COVID-19 hit.” They postponed classes, with the plan to start them up again in the fall. The postponement pained Lauren. “I really wanted to keep doing something for the students because they were so excited and loved what we were doing. I could tell that they were excited. They were practicing Spanish and using Spanish. I didn't want to lose that momentum.”
In the face of the restrictions, she drew upon her creativity, resilience and ingenuity to keep that joy and excitement alive for her students. She embarked on yet another new learning experience as an educator.
“I made videos for them to watch weekly for the rest of the semester. I focused on teaching them about a country rather than just teaching them how to say certain words in Spanish. I just talked in Spanish during the videos and talked to them about countries. I also did interviews with people from those countries and even created a couple cooking videos.” The online curriculum provided a continued learning experience for the kids, keeping them engaged with their language and culture lessons. For her own personal growth, the videos were an opportunity for Lauren to navigate both the challenges and advantages of virtual instruction. When fall arrived, with the help of fellow student Daniel Carr, she was able to bring the Los Puentes class full circle and return to in-person instruction with a smaller group of four. “It was very challenging, but it was also so rewarding. I was able to get very close with those four students. It was amazing to see the moment when they understood. I got to see them start to speak and create Spanish. Especially the older students. They were talking, in simple sentences, but in sentences. By the end of the class, they were starting to pick up on the small words that I didn't explicitly teach.” At the outset, Lauren had known leading Los Puentes was going to be a meaningful and important experience for her. She knew it would provide her the opportunity to build a curriculum from scratch. She knew it would allow her to explore her planning skills at every elementary development level in the language she is passionate about teaching. But what she couldn’t know at the beginning is how it would test her resolve. How the year would force her to cope with some of the most complicated planning and delivery issues education has had to deal with in recent history. How she would end up learning what kind of an educator she is at heart, and whether her passion and commitment to teaching were as deeply held as she thought they were. The answer Lauren found was a resounding yes. “I don't think I've ever been as happy as I was teaching that class. I just knew that this is what I want to do with my life. I want to get out and teach young students Spanish or teach them other languages and about culture. It was just so incredibly rewarding.” As she completes her student teaching and prepares to graduate, she is confident in her abilities, excited for the future and ready to share her talents with the students she will meet.
The instructional videos Lauren created for Los Puentes are on the Emporia Spanish Speakers website at emporiaspanishspeakers.com/ programs
Stepping Into The Unknown
One student discovers a love for research & expands her horizons
Guadalupe ‘Lupe’ Barrera didn’t know a soul at Emporia State when she first arrived from Kansas City, Missouri. Drawn by the strong reputation of the School of Business, she decided to override her nerves and shyness and push herself to try something new. What she didn’t know at the time is it would be the first of many steps she would make outside of her comfort zone.
By the end of her three years as an accounting major, she would be actively involved in student organizations and research projects that spanned well beyond her field of study. Now, as she prepares to graduate this spring, she has developed a newfound level of confidence, curiosity and a desire to push past her limits and grow. It started with a nudge from a friend. “One of my roommates talked to me about ESU Ambassadors, and I said, ‘What? I don't know anything about this college, and I am scared to talk to people.’” But her friend encouraged her to not let those worries stand in her way of going for it. She went for the interview and was asked to join the student organization that serves as the face of ESU and gives daily campus tours. Having that experience as an ESU Ambassador helped her become a little bolder. She joined H.A.L.O. (Hispanic American Leadership Organization), eventually becoming Treasurer, and became a member of the Honors College. This decision would open a gateway to research exploration that has had an enormous influence on the scope of her education.
Since her freshman year, she has conducted multiple research projects over a range of topics from geography to sociology. “I love accounting, but I also love the humanities. I love learning about what's going on in our world. You can always connect it.” It is this thirst for understanding that draws her to such diverse subjects. “I want to know about people. I want to know how I can help.” Gary Wyatt, associate provost and dean of the Honors College, says she has taken advantage of the opportunities presented to her. “Lupe has truly chosen to have a high-impact educational experience at ESU. She has taken full advantage of the Honors College and what it offers in several ways, including being mentored by distinguished scholar and Roe R. Cross Distinguished Professor Dr. Phil Kelly on a geopolitics project. This allowed Lupe the opportunity to accomplish something most undergraduates only dream about, namely coauthoring a scholarly article with Dr. Kelly and fellow student, Jack Jewett, that has been published in an international peer-reviewed journal. Her research on the classical geopolitics is a testament to what a motivated student and a faculty mentor can accomplish.” Last year, this passion and curiosity prompted her to turn her research to the urgent issue of the moment, COVID-19 and food insecurity. It was a project that would end with her research earning second place in the #SwarmHunger Leadership Awards, a wonderful confirmation of the value of her work. This competition was sponsored by the EAT (Emporia At The Table) Initiative as a showcase and competition for Emporia State students to present their work addressing food insecurity topics. Although it was ultimately a success, from an emotional and practical perspective, it was her most challenging project to date. She says of the experience in spring of 2020, “Emotionally, it was frustrating. I was researching a problem that I myself was going through, my family was going through, people that I know we're going through. Dealing with all that and trying to figure out the problem was very relatable.” As she wrestled with the emotional and mental challenges of the topic, she also had to battle the logistical challenges COVID was creating. She contacted multiple organizations but was having difficulty getting them to respond to her. The initial lockdown and subsequent restrictions meant it was impossible to meet in person or visit the facilities.
In spite of these roadblocks, she worked with her faculty advisor, Dr. Rob Catlett, associate professor of Mathematics and Economics, revised her plans, seized the opportunities available and persevered. “I decided to focus on one organization, making a case study and figuring out how their mechanisms and their ways of helping people changed.” Her resulting study would be called Dynamics of Food Insecurity in a Pandemic—Seton Center: Issues, Challenges and Analysis of Potential Solutions. She learned a great deal about food insecurity: the challenges of reaching those in need and the often invisible nature of the problem. But through the research, she also gained a new sense of self. “I feel like I picked up social skills. I know what to say. I can present myself really well. I am not shy.” It also helped her build her confidence and independence. “I feel like I can get a lot of things done on my own without having to bug anyone. I just use my resources. That's something I feel like also comes from research.” Looking back at where she started as a freshman, a little timid and shy, she credits her willingness to stretch beyond her comfort zone and let her curiosity lead her as being key to her success. Each step into the unknown helped her become bolder and braver, and opened another door of opportunity. Wyatt is effusive when he talks about all that Lupe has accomplished in her time as a student at Emporia State. “She is a student with exceptional academic skills who will be graduating “With Honors” from the Honors College this spring. She is bound to be a success in either graduate school or on the job. She represents the very best of what ESU has to offer.”
Research was key in providing her a transformational education. It was formative, even though it didn’t directly relate to her field of study. She learned about herself while she was learning her subject matter. “Research definitely challenges you. It challenges you because you go in with one mindset, you think you know your answer is going to be this, and you go for it. But, that's not how research works. Research takes you beyond that. It's beautiful. I feel like you always learn more than you expected to learn. I recommend research to everybody.” She has one other word of advice for any new student arriving on campus. “Get out of your comfort zone. If you don’t, you're going to miss everything.”
