With a focus on strengthening the number of teachers in the state, as well as supporting their well-being and work in the classroom, University of Wisconsin-Stout’s School of Education is hosting two events this spring for both future and current educators.
Teach Day, on Tuesday, April 21, helps high school students envision themselves as future teachers with hands-on activities led by faculty and university students in peer-to-peer learning environments.
The annual Early Childhood Education Conference is on Friday, April 24, and Saturday, April 25. This year’s theme is “Whole-Child, Whole Educator: Building Emotional Wellness in Every Classroom.” Registration is open for current educators and child development professionals.
“There has never been a more crucial time to introduce high school students to the profession of education,” said School of Education Director Shannon Donnelly. “The more we can help to shape the narrative around the positives of being an educator, the more it helps to recruit people to the profession and also to keep them there.”
Media are welcome to the events and may reach out to Anna Dalka, Operations and Events Coordinator for Educational Pathways, at dalkaa@uwstout.edu, to coordinate.
Teach Day
For Teach Day, high school students choose to focus on one of the School of Education’s undergraduate programs: art education, early childhood education, family and consumer sciences education, marketing and business education, math education, social studies education, special education and technology education.
Program directors and university student volunteers will lead the young students in two activities in their focus areas: the Teach Back Challenge and Future Classroom Design. These activities give students hands-on experiences in teaching a lesson and designing their dream school of the future through an innovative lens. The high school students also are given a campus tour and participate in a student panel of early childhood education (ECE) majors.
“By engaging in authentic, hands-on experiences and connecting with current education students and faculty, participants gain a better understanding of the impact and importance of the teaching profession. Events like this play an important role in strengthening the pipeline of future educators while also reinforcing the passion and commitment of those already preparing to enter the field,” said Assistant Professor Jody Shong, who will lead early childhood education and early childhood special education activities during Teach Day.
Participants will share in interactive, hands-on activities designed to give them a glimpse into what teaching young children looks like in practice. The activities are intentionally experiential, allowing students to step into the role of a teacher while exploring how young children learn, communicate and develop, Shong said.
Through a series of engaging challenges, students will experience the importance of clear instruction, problem-solving and inclusive teaching practices. They will explore how ECE teachers use their understanding of child development to design learning environments and support the needs of all learners.
“The session will conclude with a short demonstration highlighting how early relationships and learning experiences shape brain development during the critical birth-to-five years. This helps students see how early childhood educators play a powerful role in supporting children’s development during one of the most important periods of life,” Shong said.
Early Childhood Education Conference
Through presentations and workshops guided by national early childhood professionals, educators at the ECE Conference will explore the powerful connection between their well-being and children’s holistic development through research-based strategies, collaborative sessions and innovative approaches. They’ll learn to create inclusive, emotionally supportive learning environments to help every child and every educator thrive.
Keynote speakers will be Dr. Julie Bates-Maves, a licensed professional counselor and professor of clinical mental health counseling at UW-Stout, and Dr. Orinthia Harris (Dr. OH), founder and executive director of STEMearly LLC. They will focus on mental health and well-being strategies for educators.
Bates-Maves’ keynote, “Stress and Burnout: Considerations for Teachers,” will focus on why understanding the impact of and the response to educator burnout is important. Her talk will explore the state of burnout, its progression and recommend responses to support the body in a stressed state. Information will be useful for teachers as much as for the students they teach.
Dr. OH’s keynote, “Finding J.O.Y. Everyday: Nurturing Mental Health and Equity in Early Childhood Education,” will give educators insight into how prioritizing their own mental health is foundational to supporting students’ well-being and cultivating positive, inclusive climates. Her keynote unpacks the J.O.Y. framework (Judging Thoughts, Observing Feelings, Yielding to Positive Actions). Reflective exercises and a hands-on STEM activity will bring the framework to life and provide concrete examples for educators to apply in their own practice.
Helping lead events for current and future teachers
For UW-Stout students, helping lead Teach Day and the ECE Conference provides valuable opportunities to practice communication, leadership and instructional skills while reflecting on their own development as future educators.
Alyssa Bratsch, an early childhood education junior from Minneapolis, will volunteer at the ECE Conference and volunteered last year as well. She sees the event as immensely beneficial to both educational professionals and UW-Stout student volunteers, who have the opportunity to connect with individuals and employers in the field.
Bratsch will graduate in fall 2027 and is also earning her Autism Spectrum Disorder Specialist Certificate. She plans to be a special education toddler teacher and appreciates that special education courses are built into the ECE program, so she can gain the skills to best support all young learners.
“During toddlerhood, a child’s brain is developing rapidly, making it a crucial period for learning basic life and social skills,” she said. “Early intervention is vital in helping children with disabilities or developmental delays. It provides support and teaching during the years when children are learning, growing and absorbing the most. By providing early intervention to children of this age range with exceptional abilities, I will help them to build the foundation for success for the rest of their lives.”
UW-Stout’s School of Education offers nine undergraduate and five graduate programs, including on-campus and online options, along with five certificates and three certifications. Graduates are 100% employed or are continuing their education within six months of graduation and have an average starting salary of $50,000, according to Career Services’ First Destination Report.
