Mrs. Traci Parr
Highlighted USD #374 Teacher
I would like to introduce our highlighted USD #374 teacher:
Mrs. Traci Parr
1. Tell us a little about yourself. (i.e. where you were born, raised, where you went to: elementary, middle, and high school, what your early life and school experiences were like.)
I’m a native to this nice little town, Sublette, Kansas. I was born, raised and educated here from kindergarten through high school. I never really thought I’d be back in my hometown teaching...but when my husband changed his career and became a State Trooper, the agency stationed us here. It must have been fate! A teaching position opened up immediately after moving here, and a year later, I became blessed with our precious son, Tregan. It has been wonderful living so close to my parents and grandmother who are so willing to help with watching my son.
A large number of colleagues I now work with were teachers of mine growing up. I even had my father for a teacher for two years in high school and several college courses. I have a lot of great memories of school here in Sublette, but it’s really my friendships I acquired while attending school here, I remember most. A lot of my best friends still today are those I attended school with in Sublette. I am even fortunate enough to team-teach with one of my closest high school best friends, Keely (Munson) Blackwood.
I was very involved in many different activities in high school. I was a cheerleader all four years, choir, band, kayettes, stucco, yearbook, and S-Club. I was also chosen for Honor choir and participated in all the theatrical plays. I was pretty out-going and LOVED to socialize (probably too much!).
2. What is something your students probably don’t know about you?
Something my students may not know about me. . . that’s a hard one. Maybe it’s that I was once on a college dance team. It was actually a lot of hard work. Not only did we have to learn and perfect many different dance styles, techniques and choreography, but we also had to keep in great shape by miles of running and weight lifting. I enjoyed it very much.
My interests/hobbies include hiking as much as possible in the Colorado mountains, snow skiing, exercising- Zumba!!, scrap booking, singing, and spending time with my son and husband.
4. What college(s) did you attend and what degree(s) did you attain?
I attended Dodge City Community College and received my associates of arts degree. I next attended Northwestern State University in Alva, Oklahoma for a year, and then I finished my education at Fort Hays State University where I graduated in 1998 in Elementary Education. That is also where I met my husband, Cody Parr.
5. What was one of your favorite classes in college? why?
My favorite college class was probably U.S. Geography my freshman year. I loved learning about our country’s landforms, landmarks, and all the interesting people and places in our country. I also liked the teacher of this course. He really made the class interesting and enjoyable. His enthusiasm and knowledge was contagious. He made us want to learn and he made me realize that this area of the U.S. really has a lot of history. Someday, I would like to travel to each state in the U.S. Oh, and by the way, this teacher I’m referring to is also my father, Jery Bailey.
6. Why or how did you pick teaching as a profession and did you think that is what you would do with your life when you were in high school?
Why did I pick my profession? I have always wanted to be a teacher. I enjoy working with little children. I especially love teaching children how to read. The whole process is so interesting to me, and it’s such a reward to see the progress of a child who is learning to read. My students come into the classroom barely knowing the alphabet or even the concept of a letter, and leave the classroom reading a book! It amazes me every year! If a child learns to read, there isn’t anything more valuable (in my opinion) a teacher could possibly teach them! I love being part of that success.
7. What all do you do at USD #374?
I teach full day kindergarten five days a week. It’s definitely not what kindergarten used to be when I was in school. My students are responsible for reading by the end of the year, writing short sentences, and adding and subtracting single digit numbers. We also teach science and social studies. Our little kiddos work very hard in class. I also help on committees such as the Language Arts SAC, and our Advisory Council committee.
8. What are the things you like about teaching?
What do I like best about teaching? First of all, I love working with children. It’ s so much fun to see life through their little eyes. They are so curious and open to learning new things; and you never know what they might come up with to say! It’s so refreshing to walk into my classroom every day and know that I will have the opportunity to impact their little minds positively. Secondly, I enjoy working with other teachers. I have acquired many close friendships through the years of my career. Lastly, I love being a part of my own child’s education. When my child starts school here, I will be able to keep tabs on him daily and be very involved in his education.
9. In a paragraph or two, write how you feel about the students that you get to work with.
My students that I get to work with each day are all so unique in their individual ways. Each child has his/her own personality. They are all so naturally curious about everything, so it’s fun getting to teach them daily. I know most of my students’ parents either by going to school with them in Sublette, teaching with them, or by friendships outside of school. So, it’s easy to have a very communicative-relationship to make their child’s education successful. I love being part of a small-town community. It’s fun to see my students at ballgames, at the Dollar General, or selling Girl Scout cookies at my doorstep. It’s true that it takes a village to raise a child. I’m sure proud to be part of this “village”.