Andria Williams stepped behind the podium, smiled and raised a victorious fist in the air.
“We did it, y’all!”
The new graduate of the NIU College of Education’s LEAP (Licensed Educator Accelerated Pathway) program with the Rockford Public Schools served as the keynote speaker for the Dec. 11 completion ceremony at the NIU Rockford center.
She spoke of knowing that her quest for a baccalaureate “would require commitment, sacrifice and determination.” She spoke of “personal obstacles that, at times, made me question whether I could keep going.” She spoke of “days when I doubted myself” and “times when life seemed to be pulling me in every direction except forward.”
“But with every new challenge, I found a new level of strength that I didn’t even know I had,” said Williams, who works at West Middle School.
“As time went on, something shifted. I began to grow, not just academically, but mentally, physically and emotionally,” she added. “I learned to push through discomfort, to manage my time with intention and to show up for myself even on the days when it felt impossible.”
Mission accomplished.
Williams was among 18 paraprofessionals from District 205 who completed the curriculum necessary to earn NIU’s B.S.Ed. in Special Education: Learning Behavior Specialist I – with all tuition covered by the Rockford Public Schools.
Others are Susan Cuevas, Jessica Deleon, Olivia Ferguson, Sam Kevin Jones, Alexa Melton, Sara Moe, Sara Ostgarden, Oruiqida Perez, Ally Sensor, Amber Smith, Waken Stinson, Natasha Stritesky, Maeve Thomas, Emily Toth, Shawna Underwood, Joseph Wagner and Nychelle Woolfolk.
LEAP, part of the college’s PLEDGE (Partnering to Lead and Empower District-Grown Educators) initiative, is delivered in a cohort format and incorporates a prior learning assessment so working educators can receive credit for past work experiences.
During their coursework, the students were able to stay on the job in their home schools, where they also logged their clinical placement and student-teaching hours.
Jason Pope, executive director of talent for RPS 205, called the graduates “trailblazers.”
“I said it was going to be hard journey – that it was going to be a lot of work – and it was probably even more than I let on,” Pope said, now calling their collective effort “well worth it. Every one of you is needed in our classrooms across the district.”
Even better, he added, “you are more prepared than you realize. These last few years that you’ve spent in the classroom? That experience is going to pay off. It’s going to pay dividends.”
NIU College of Education Dean Mary Earick made sure that the students understood that the culmination of their program is not the end of their upward momentum.
“I can say that with authority,” Earick said, “because as a single mom, it took me 13 years to get my undergraduate degree, and here I stand before you today as a dean.”
Teaching “is more than a profession. It is a calling. It’s about shaping lives and opening doors for youth and families,” she added. “Teachers don’t only impact the students in their classrooms. They’re impacting caregivers, moms, dads, tías and tíos and the community at large – and also beyond Rockford.”
Ally Sensor is ready.
Sensor has worked as a paraprofessional in the district for 10 years, starting at Wilson Aspire’s self-contained special education program.
“When I was growing up, my mom worked at the RocVale home for adults and young adults with disabilities. I would go to work with her, hang out and just kind of found a passion for helping individuals with disabilities,” Sensor said.
Years later, she chatted on the phone with a friend who worked at Wilson.
“As she was talking to me about it, I was like, ‘You know what? This sounds like a fun adventure for me,’ and that’s when it started, and then I just absolutely fell in love with it,” she said. “I love helping individuals who don’t have a voice of their own who I can advocate for and help them find their voice. My passion is growing every year.”
Her professional path in District 205 took her to the autism programs housed at Nashold Early Childhood Center and at Gregory Elementary School, where for the last two years she has taught full time on an emergency license.
She is grateful to her employer for the chance to ascend.
“The program is completely paid for by the district, so I haven’t had to worry about money, which was the only thing between me and college in the past,” she said. “The funding is something you absolutely cannot pass up.”
Degree now in hand, she will “continue advocating for my students the best way I can. Having this under my belt lets me do a lot more for them.”
For her colleagues at Gregory, however, it is an official approval that confirms what they already knew.
“None of them question if I am a teacher,” Sensor said. “I have the knowledge. I have the past experience. I’m able to act and present myself as a professional in a way where they don’t question if I’m a student-teacher. I’m just a teacher in their eyes.”
Williams understands.
“This journey showed me the true meaning of possibility,” she said.
“It reminded me that when you believe in yourself, and when you allow others to believe in you, too, doors open that you never thought were meant for you. I stand here today stronger, more confident and more determined than ever to make an impact in the lives of students and communities I will serve.”
