For over 30 years, the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville (UACCB) has provided adult education classes for those seeking a GED. The success of those students is in part due to the efforts of the instructors who work tirelessly to support students in achieving their goals.
Andrea Lee (pictured above, left) and Becky Saffell (right) have a combined 42 years of teaching experience and share a passion for helping students obtain their educational goals to gain employment, gain better employment, or enter post-secondary training.
What inspires them to teach:
Lee, an instructor at the UACCB Highland Adult Education campus, began teaching in 2004. Lee said her inspiration to teach comes from seeing a student’s academic self-perception change.
“We are often the first step to our non-traditional students who are returning to an educational setting,” Lee said. “Often, our students have had personal reasons or maybe a negative educational experience that has changed their course from a traditional one.”
Lee said as an instructor she can provide students with a positive, encouraging experience with education that provides students with confidence and tools to move on to the next goal.
She said the best thing about teaching is being a facilitator.
“I enjoy providing the academic support and watching students gain confidence. In addition, I enjoy helping students find resources to overcome barriers,” Lee said.
Saffell, who teaches at the Batesville campus, started her career at UACCB in 1997 as an adjunct instructor and began teaching full-time in August 1998.
Saffell said her inspiration to teach comes from several sources including her family.
“I am a third generation teacher in a family that now has fourth generation teachers,” Saffell said. “I guess you could say it is in my blood, but what inspires me most is seeing that student who has struggled throughout school to have that breakthrough moment and reach their goal.”
She said it is also inspiring to see what an impact a student’s education has on their families.
“The impact that added education has on a student is one of the best things about teaching,” Saffell said. “I have been teaching in adult education for so long that I have had other members of the same family in class, such as parents and their children. It is wonderful to see what great, hard-working individuals most have become.”
Today’s biggest challenge for students:
Both instructors said students face many challenges in obtaining their goals but encouragement from a support system and setting short-term goals to prioritize their time can help.
“Many of our students have family obligations, work obligations, or other caretaking responsibilities,” Lee said. “It’s often difficult for students to see the possibility of reaching a long-term goal when day to day seems overwhelming.”
She said an action plan with short-term goals leading to a long-term goal can assist students in prioritizing and seeing goals as achievable.
Likewise, Saffell said not having the support system to thrive is a big challenge for her student.
“Most people take for granted that they have dependable transportation, gas money, food on the table, electricity, or even $4 to pay for a GED test,” she said. “A lot of my students just need a little encouragement and support to better themselves and most just do not have that support.”
Measuring success:
Success can be measured in many ways and there are many formal assessments with data to measure learning, but for these instructors’ success is more than numbers on an exam.
“My success is in the success of my students,” Lee said. “I feel successful when I see a former student out in the community and he or she shares a personal story of working at a job that that was identified as a goal, graduating from post-secondary training, or successfully helping children with homework.”
Saffell said when a former student offers a thank you for all you have done for him or her in a public place, that is how she measures success.
“If I can make a difference in one student’s life, then I have done my job and have been successful,” she said. “You can have all the degrees and awards in the world, but a simple thank you can mean the world to someone.”
With instructors like Lee and Saffell helping students work toward their goals, success is possible.
The UACCB Adult Education program serves students in Independence and Sharp counties. For more information, call (870) 612-2164 or visit www.uaccb.edu.
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