Prepared for Impact

As a standout goalkeeper on Simpson’s women’s soccer team,  Lani Mears ’24 says she was always mentally prepared for anything coming her way. Mears has taken that same vigilant mindset into the classroom at Emerson Elementary in Indianola, where she spent Spring semester student teaching kindergartners.

“As a goalie, you have to be on your toes,” said Mears. “You may not be in the action at the moment, but you have to be ready — and that’s totally like teaching. I’ve learned that no two days are going to be the exact same, and things can change on the flip of a coin.”

Mears, who earned the Dr. Donna J. Helble ’71 Award recognizing the outstanding junior in elementary education last year, says the new education space in Dunn is amazing — the ideal place to prepare her lesson plans and practice teaching.

Her growing confidence as a student teacher, comes from the design of Simpson’s education program and the faculty who prepared her. Going through a series of immersive experiences that build on each other provided the scaffolding that readied her for the challenge of student teaching.

“You’ve worked four years for this moment,” said Mears. “And you have so much practice by then: in your classes, in practicum, teaching lessons, and just being with kids — or even teaching your peers. So, it’s not so nerve-wracking to stand up in front of the class when you f inally get there.”

Mears says that gaining classroom experience and acquiring her teaching license are huge in paving the way toward her ultimate goal of serving as a speech pathologist in a school setting. In the short term, she plans to teach next fall while also preparing to pursue a master’s degree.