Tarleton Teacher Residents Get End-of-semester Surprise

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STEPHENVILLE — The Granbury and Huckabay school districts delivered a huge pre-graduation surprise to their Tarleton State University teacher residents Wednesday afternoon.

As part of the Texas COVID Learning Acceleration Supports (TCLAS) grant opportunity, the districts paid their 26 Tarleton teacher residents (clinical teachers) participating in the yearlong teacher residency program $20,000 each for their work this year.

Because the funds were not released at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, the checks were issued as a lump sum partial payment. The remainder will be given after the students complete the school year at the district.

Tarleton President James Hurley, Granbury Superintendent Dr. Jeremy Glenn and Barbara Townsend, GISD School Board President, presented the checks to the 18 Granbury residents. Dr. Hurley, Superintendent Troy Roberts and Principal Wes Corzin handed out checks to the eight Huckabay residents.

“We as a district realized that Tarleton puts out some of the best educators in the state,” Dr. Glenn said. “Granbury ISD and Dr. Hurley and his staff want to continue to push the envelope to make education better, not only in Granbury but across the state.”

Huckabay Superintendent Roberts thanked the Tarleton residents for their hard work as he delivered the checks.

“This is a token of our appreciation for the value we have in your taking care of our students every day and making sure that they learn, and in helping your cooperating teachers,” he said.

Dr. Hurley encouraged the teacher residents to complete the school year with their sponsoring districts after they graduate from Tarleton this month.

“We urge them to finish the race they have started,” he said, “because we know Texans know how to finish strong.” He thanked the college leadership, staff and faculty, the mentor teachers and the leadership of both districts for their commitment to developing “the best teachers in Texas.”

Dr. Kim Rynearson, Dean of the Tarleton College of Education and Human Development, emphasized the effectiveness of the program, now in six school districts across the region, Opportunity Culture, US PREP and the Region 11 Service Center.

“This ensures that the teachers of tomorrow can be better prepared for teaching and not have to work other jobs or take out loans while attending their residency in their last year at Tarleton,” she said.

Some of the teacher residents said they will pay student loans and start savings accounts they thought they couldn’t begin until next year.

Skylar Wisdom, an HISD resident, said her windfall will be put to good use. “I’m going to be able to get an apartment now,” she said.

Next year’s residents at these two districts will receive a monthly check throughout the year, as TEA recently released the funds for disbursement through the TCLAS grant.

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