Education

Adapting to Change While Balancing A Well-Rounded Life

Badger Strong! That’s how thirty-year Prescott resident and fifteen-year Prescott Unified School District (PUSD) employee Kim Barker describes her life and family. Kim, Director of Transportation/Facilities, started out as a part-time employee in the district’s print shop and spent most of her years at Miller Valley until it closed in 2015. After Miller Valley’s closure, Kim joined the department as an Administrative Assistant leading up to her current role.

A Foresty Fairy-Tale Wedding

Taylor Howard and Joey Bemis met on Valentine’s Day six years ago, while they were both students at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

After a rocky initial start (she didn’t remember his name when they met up the next time), Taylor said, “It didn’t take long for us to pretty much spend every waking moment together.”

Later this year, they’ll tie the knot—promising to spend the rest of their lives together.

Taylor, who teaches kindergarten at Taylor Hicks Elementary School, said she and Joey are planning their ideal “fairy tale” wedding: an intimate occasion with just 38 guests at a treehouse retreat in Washington state.

A Tradition of Love

For more than a decade, Tracy Courson has worked at Prescott Mile High Middle School, which means she’s had the opportunity to be part of so many wonderful traditions. The most important: love.

A Pioneering Spirit

For Kathryn Van Demark, eighth-grade Life Skills Instructor at Prescott Mile High Middle School, creating a curriculum that centers on teen wellness and real-world readiness was a natural extension of her focus and education in college. She attended Lesley University in Boston where she obtained a degree in Holistic Psychology and Wellness.

Women Helping Women Reach for the Stars

P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization) has brought together more than half a million women in the United States and Canada who are passionate about helping women advance through education while supporting and motivating them. Founded on January 21, 1869, by seven students at Iowa Wesleyan College in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, this circle of kindred spirits – bonded by their enthusiasm for women’s opportunities – eventually expanded to include women off campus as well.

Opening the World to Tomorrow’s Leaders

Northpoint Expeditionary Learning Academy focuses on turning out students who can think for themselves, be good to each other, and change the world

For the Kids

As society returns to a state of post-pandemic normalcy—most of us are ready to put to rest the fear and chaos COVID-19 brought—it’s time to shine a light on those who persevered in ways some of us will never understand. We are so proud of our nurses, teachers, frontline workers, and service industry workers. We also want to give credit where credit is due to the teachers at the Juvenile Justice Center who showed up every day, providing their students with the education and skillsets they deserve.

Redefining Workforce Readiness

Through a powerful fusion of hands-on work, professional development, and mentorship, GEM Corps enables crew members to further their education and gain employment

‘A family campus’

College savings is the main reason Rachel chose AAEC over other schools; it’s unusual because it directly pays community college tuition for its students. Every AAEC student earns at least 17 college credits, and some graduate from high school with associate degrees. AAEC pays Yavapai College (YC) $100,000 to $150,000 annually for its students, said Andrea Popejoy, AAEC registrar and executive assistant. This year’s AAEC graduates have been awarded more than $950,000 in scholarships, Andrea added.

Being There for the Kids

Lead Counselor for PUSD’s Social-Emotional Team, Ann Chavez is helping the district and the community promote student success

Bringing the Classroom Outdoors

For the Prescott Unified School District (PUSD), 2020 posed challenges that resulted in many forms of creativity to further the education of the community’s youth. One of these creative ventures—and a collaborative effort with the City of Prescott—resulted in the development of the Prescott Schools Trail, a new section of the City of Prescott Trails System that travels behind Abia Judd and Granite Mountain Schools and links to the Community Nature Center (CNC), providing plenty of outdoor learning spaces and amphitheaters.

Shelley Soifer enjoys helping kindergarteners develop solid school foundation

With 17 years of teaching kindergarten, Shelley Soifer is considered a mentor by her peers and Taylor Hicks Elementary School Principal Kelsey Secor.

“She can be silly and goofy with them, but also serious and fun,” Secor related, calling Soifer friendly, upbeat and approachable.