About 400 Arkansas high school students flooded the University of Central Arkansas campus on Thursday to take part in the fourth-annual Spark an Interest in Teaching Conference co-hosted by the College of Education and Teachers of Tomorrow.
Students took part in several workshops organized to help promote teaching as a career choice and begin early preparations for that career.
Provost Gabriel Esteban welcomed the students on behalf of UCA President Lu Hardin. ?One of President Hardin?s top priorities when he applied to become president at UCA was to return the university to its roots of teaching,? he said. ?I encourage you, as potential teachers, to pursue a career in teaching.?
Esteban recounted the way he was impacted by his first-grade teacher who helped him learn English and social studies. ?She stood by me and I still remember her till this day,? he said. ?That?s the impact you can have on the next generation.?
Dr. Lloyd Sain, an alumnus of the university who now works for the Little Rock School District, also welcomed the students.
Sain said he knew as early as the fourth grade that he wanted to be a teacher. ?Unfortunately, they didn?t have a Teachers of Tomorrow program to nurture that desire when I was a student,? he said. ?Still, I followed my dreams and have been able to achieve a 20-year career in education.?
Sain told the students his thoughts on the importance of teaching. ?All other professions rely on teaching,? he said. ?We?re counting on you ? and children to come are counting on you ? to become great teachers and leave the world better than it was before.?
