Future teachers honored at HVA
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Hardin Valley Academy teacher Dana Sherrell, far left, stands alongside students Amanya Washington, Allie Hedrick, Corley Vaughn, Addisyn Wagner, Lillian Lanza, Karla Pawlak and Destiny Smith. These seven students have chosen to become educators after being inspired by teachers in their own lives. - Jake Nichols
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A plethora of decorations welcomed visitors to the Hardin Valley Academy auditorium last Friday, March 27, as seven HVA students took part in the school’s Future Teacher Signing Day. - Jake Nichols
On Friday, March 27, students and teachers packed into the auditorium at Hardin Valley Academy.
Seven of those students sat at decorated tables onstage, and above them, a large graphic with three words reflected the occasion: Future Teacher Signing Day.
The school’s fifth-annual ceremony honored HVA seniors Amanya Washington, Allie Hedrick, Corley Vaughn, Addisyn Wagner, Lillian Lanza, Karla Pawlak and Destiny Smith.
Each student is part of Hardin Valley’s Teaching as a Profession (TAP) program, which has been led by Dana Sherrell since 2014.
During the ceremony, each student signed to declare her intent to become an educator, listing teachers who have made impacts on their own lives.
“It’s incredibly meaningful,” Sherrell said after serving as the emcee for the ceremony. “Teaching is one of the most important professions in our society, but it’s also a profession that requires a great deal of dedication and heart. To see students not only consider education as a career but truly feel called to it is very special. Over the past five years, we’ve watched students discover their passion for teaching through the TAP pathway and through their field experiences in real classrooms.
“When they make the decision to pursue education, it’s exciting because you know they will go on to influence the next generation of students. That ripple effect is powerful.”
She noted this ceremony was purposefully set up to mimic the athletic signing ceremonies that take place across the country every year.
“When we first started the ceremony five years ago, the goal was simple: we wanted to celebrate students who were choosing to enter the teaching profession in the same way athletes celebrate signing
days for college athletics,” Sherrell said. “Choosing to become a teacher is just as meaningful of a commitment, and we felt it deserved recognition.
“Many of these students chose education because a teacher believed in them, encouraged them or helped them through a difficult time. Seeing those students now commit to doing the same for future generations is really inspiring.”
Two Knox County Schools representatives, director of Career and Technical Education Matthew Mosley and executive director of Talent
Acquisition Alex Moseman, were on hand to speak for the event.
Mosley noted Sherrell’s impact on the future educators who walk the halls at HVA, addressing the aspect of teaching that goes far beyond the subject matter.
“Every one of us has a teacher we can look back on and remember because there was a personal connection, something that drilled down beyond the content,” he said. “That is what’s so special about what we do, that we get to shape people, and Mrs. Sherrell does an excellent job of instilling that passion for people.”
Meanwhile, Moseman noted each student who took part in this ceremony would be guaranteed interviews with Knox County Schools upon completion of their degrees.
“We believe everybody should have a clear, well-supported pathway into teaching, and there’s no clearer place to make that commitment than the TAP program here at Hardin Valley Academy,” Moseman said. “KCS is a district with momentum. We have seen teacher retention rise, starting school years fully staffed. So to see folks pick up on that in schools is really exciting.”
