New Teaching Eagles

Fair Grove kicks off a new year with some new faces. There have been four new teachers who have joined the eagle training squad: Haley Stallings, Katie Fender, Kayla Holt, and Robert Schoonover.

Fair Grove has plenty of attractive features for new educators, fourth grade teacher Haley Stallings elaborated, “I choose Fair Grove because I absolutely love the community and culture that has been cultivated in this town…” She went on to say, “I remember moving to Fair Grove in the sixth grade and knowing no one. My cousin Shay became very ill and passed away within months of us being here. It was Shay’s first year at Fair Grove as well; however, the gym was filled with his Fair Grove family. The love and support that surrounded our family, from what seemed like strangers at the time, was unexplainable.” 

Stallings stated, “My experience the past few months has been nothing short of a challenge. Teaching amidst a pandemic is not ideal and they don’t cover it in under-grad courses. While the first few months of school have been a challenge, they have also been very rewarding. I am incredibly thankful that I am able to teach my students in person and invest in them daily.”

Ms. Stallings is currently coaching middle school volleyball, and explained how she will help with the middle school play and speech and debate, as well as assist the middle school softball team in the spring.

Other teachers are also getting involved with athletics and clubs. New middle school teacher, Kayla Holt, said that she will be involved with middle school track in the spring, as she was an assistant track coach at Bolivar (her previous school).

Mrs. Holt teaches English Language Arts. She explained, “My experience has been wonderful so far. Everyone is extremely supportive and trusts that the teachers know their stuff, which allows us to teach standards how we want.” 

Another new teacher, Katie Fender (6th grade teacher), said, “I chose Fair Grove because of the atmosphere here. Everyone is positive, encouraging, and has school spirit- I wanted to be a part of that. In a way Fair Grove also chose me- I grew up here and have always felt a passion for my home town. Also the 4 day school week was a huge perk!”

The last teacher is Robert Schoonover (Special Education teacher). Mr. Shoonover elaborated on his experience at Fair Grove, “My experience has been great so far! These first few weeks have flown by. I have been learning a lot during my first year and feel like I am growing and learning something new everyday!”

Shoonover explained that he chose Fair Grove because of the atmosphere and the culture of the school. He said that his student teaching at Fair Grove in the spring made his decision fairly easy. He pointed out, “Everyone was really kind and was focused on helping people become better educators, students, and people in general.”