On Thursday, February 9th, FTA (Future Teachers of America) members took a field trip down to Branson, Missouri to tour College of the Ozarks. FTA is one of the numerous clubs at Fair Grove High School. FTA introduces students to a career in teaching and teaches them to support their teachers and staff.
20 members attended the field trip. While they were at College of the Ozarks, students were able to tour the entire campus, including the Education Department. To go on the field trip FTA members must have shown good character and participated in a minimum number of FTA hosted volunteer events such as Parents’ Night Out, where parents are able to drop off their children for a night of supervised fun, Grandparents’ Day, or they must help decorate for Teacher of the Month.
In recent years, FTA has toured at different colleges such as, Drury, Southern Baptist University, Missouri State, and Evangel. One of FTA’s sponsors, Beth Mauldin, added, “The universities are happy to see high school students, especially those that are considering a future in teaching. But you don’t have to major in education to get to go on these field trips.”
FTA members were also able to tour classrooms, dorms, and most of the buildings on campus. Sophomore Harley Maxwell commented, “My favorite part was taking a tour of the dorm rooms. I really enjoyed seeing where I could potentially be living if I decided to attend College of the Ozarks.” While on campus, members also were spoken to about becoming a teacher and how they should go about it. FTA takes these college visits in hopes that it will help students decide which college is best for them.