Erin Gattens
Hershey,
PA
Major: English and Spanish Education
Erin Gattens felt confident
from the start about choosing IUP, but learning about the Honors
College made her choice even easier.
"I knew IUP had a great teacher
education program, and when I found out about the Honors College,
I was sold. I had participated in the Pennsylvania Governor’s
School for Teaching during the summer between 10th and 11th grade
and wanted to find a situation as similar to that as possible.
The Honors College seemed to be the answer to my needs. First
off, Honors College students are all housed in one building, whereas
other Honors Colleges may just permit you to take classes labeled
'Honors.' The Honors College prides itself in its selectivity
of students and professors and strives to challenge its students
every day. And, the Core curriculum is the most unique aspect
of the college, which helps eliminate the boredom of 101 classes
where you sit with students who don’t want to be there and
don’t care. The Core curriculum focuses on learning rather
than grades; it really makes you think rather than memorize and
regurgitate information as in many freshman classes. And, as I've
heard it said, IUP is most certainly 'the biggest small university.'
It facilitates over 14,000 students, yet manages to survive and
prosper by keeping class sizes small and hiring the best professors.
Plus, IUP provides many opportunities for its students and makes
it a priority to network with people in the 'real world.' In particular,
IUP helps high school students who may not have done well in school
succeed through its Learning Center program. (I’m involved
with this through the partnership programs and the tutoring center.)
And the best part of it is we’re getting an Ivy League education
for the price of a state school. It doesn’t get much better
than that."
With a major that spans three departments,
English, Spanish and Education, Erin Gattens has gained a broad
overview of what IUP is like both in – and outside –
the Honors College. Ask her about her experiences in those departments
and Erin, without hesitation, replies, "I’ll
give you the low down on all three," and
begins with the English department.
"In general, all of my professors
in the English department are very professional and knowledgeable
about their subject area. They all have an enthusiasm for their
subject matter that just pervades the room when they’re teaching.
The teachers in the English Education department are especially
caring and intelligent. They will go out of their way to help
the students whenever possible. I keep in touch with most of my
English professors throughout the years via email…they no
longer become just 'teachers,' but friends and colleagues. What
is even more amazing is the fact that they all are involved in
other endeavors besides those relating to their classes. It’s
amazing to see the projects they are working on and see what motivates
them to be life-long learners."
The Spanish department, the other half of
Erin Gattens' major, is smaller than the English department, but
Erin says that, as in English, the professors go that extra distance
for their students.
"All of the professors, once again,
are involved with their students and do everything possible to
help them succeed. My advisor and professor, Dr. Eileen Glisan,
has gone over and above to help me through the difficulties of
managing a double major. She always has time to meet with me and
answers my e-mails right away. She is not only a mentor, but also
a friend. It is through her that I had the opportunity to work
at the University School for an entire year with two grade levels
(5th and 6th) instead of just the one grade-one per semester arrangement.
She supported all of my efforts to bring technology into the classroom
and to use Spanish to communicate with others via the Internet."
As with the English and Spanish departments,
Erin found the professors in Education went out of their way to
be helpful.
"The IUP Education department
is a complex web of professionals who all play a role in helping
us succeed. There are so many things to worry about when going
through the education program, but their 'Four-Step Plan' eases
the tension. They are always helpful when I have to apply for
credit overload or have problems due to the double-major. They
work hard to make connections with the world so that we can have
tons of opportunities for jobs and student teaching."
Those opportunities, in the case of Erin Gattens,
led to a variety of teaching activities ranging from pre-student
teaching in Spanish at the University Middle, a Philadelphia Urban
Seminar, along with pre-student teaching in English at Edison
High School in Philadelphia, working as a private Spanish tutor,
and joining several inner-city partnership programs and participating,
as a presenter at IUP's English Undergraduate Conference.
"Because of the multitude of
opportunities available here at IUP, I feel I am much better prepared
for my job as a future educator than are other students at other
colleges. I have gained hands-on, 'real world' experience at teaching
in a laboratory school, suburban schools, and an urban (inner-city)
high school. Thanks to my memberships in professional organizations
like Kappa Delta Pi (Education), Sigma Tau Delta (English), NCTE,
and others, I am able to be a part of a network of professionals
who can contribute and share ideas. By doing this, we are helping
to improve education and make as many innovations as possible.
I hope to be a secondary educator somewhere. I have no doubt that
when I have completed IUP’s program in English and Spanish,
I will be fully prepared for this job market."
For Erin Gattens, looking back on all
these activities, opportunities, accomplishments, what stands
out for her is her work with the University School.
"I taught there for an entire year,
which was more than I needed to do, but I was helping out my professor
since they didn’t have enough student teachers to go around.
I used technology and some new teaching methods to really bring
the language to the students. When I assessed where they had been
at the beginning of the year with where they were at the end of
the year, I knew that it was a real accomplishment for the students
as well as myself. If I can inspire just one person to keep learning,
that is enough reward for me. I know I have done this because
since my students have graduated from the University School, they
have kept contact with me via email about their progress in Spanish
and I am even tutoring some of them privately so that they can
keep up their advanced work. These kinds of programs are what
make the IUP Education program so wonderful."
More information about Erin
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