Retired SMS teacher gives back at VFES to encourage future generations of learners
Even
though Rhonda LaMaster retired from the classroom at Scott County
School District 2, she has not given up helping future generations of
students learn the value of their education.
“The kids need to see
positive faces outside of the teachers and the principals,” said
LaMaster, who is a volunteer in the Watch Dads Of Great Students, or the
Watch D.O.G.S. program, at Vienna-Finley Elementary School.
The
VFES Heroes program gives parents, relatives and community members the
chance to serve the students and the school all while creating positive
role models for the students.
“As a retired teacher, I know it’s very important to have lots of volunteers,” LaMaster said.
Three
years ago, LaMaster went back to the classroom to help and to show her
two grandchildren, who were attending VFES, that their education was
important to her.
“I like to be in the classroom,” the former middle school math teacher said.
Each
month, LaMaster starts her day back at school, standing on the sidewalk
in front of the school to help with the morning car line. She helps the
students being dropped off to school exit their vehicles. She makes
sure she greets them with a smile on their face and encourages them that
their school day will be positive.
After the school day
officially begins, she visits the school counselor, Holly Asdell, to see
what she can do to help. Some days, it is cutting items for bulletin
boards; other days, it is working in the classroom alongside the
teachers; and sometimes, it is both.
“Last week, I helped make
pine cone and peanut butter bird feeders,” LaMaster said. The bird
feeder was an activity for the second-grade students as they learned
about birds of prey and visited Hardy Lake to see the raptor
rehabilitation center.
Even though she is not teaching middle
school math, LaMaster is still helping students learn their arithmetic
by using Accelerated Math at VFES.
“I love to watch kids learn,
especially in my own grandchildren,” LaMaster said. “We want them to
know that what they are doing is important.”
She also spends time
with the students on the playground. She watches the children play,
gives them a push on the swing, and plays with them. LaMaster wants the
children to associate her face as a positive, adult one.
“Some
children don’t have these positive role models at home,” LaMaster said.
“We are helping our kids to grow up to be good citizens.”
At the
end of the school day, LaMaster returns home until the next month when
she can invest her time and talents into her grandchildren’s generation
of learners. Her granddaughter is now in middle school, her grandson is
in second grade, and she has another grandchild, who is not old enough
to start school but will one day attend VFES.
“I have a long life at Vienna-Finley,” LaMaster said.
LaMaster
continues to give back to the school district where she once taught,
encouraging the next generation of learners to be successful. At Scott
County School District 2, LaMaster’s story is our story. Your story
matters. You matter.