New Teacher Education Program Eases Transition to Classroom
by Amanda Hurt, staff writer

Many students are interested in teaching as a career choice but are unsure what to expect as they start their preparation in a teacher training program.

South Plains College has helped to reduce that anxiety by offering a new associate’s degree in teaching, which offers field observation experience in an actual classroom setting.

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the Associate of Arts in Teaching degree (AAT) in the summer of 2004. South Plains College was the first community college to offer the program, beginning in the fall of 2004. This program was the first of its kind in the state of Texas, and the first graduates walked across the stage at the Texan Dome in May 2005. To date, a total of 117 students have been served, either through graduation or are currently enrolled in this program.

“South Plains College has been a real pioneer in the state of Texas,” said Dr. Gail Platt, director of the Teaching and Learning Center at SPC. “It was the first community college in the state to offer the AAT program. It’s a fabulous program for those students who want to become teachers, and it enables them to find out early on if this is really what they want to do.”

This program gives freshmen and sophomore students the chance to take introductory courses in education, starting the students on their career course as underclassmen, instead of putting it off until their junior year at a university. The students are involved in group projects and gain knowledge in the educational experience by having the chance to observe other teachers, by making visits to various schools to monitor teachers and students in their classroom environments. In addition, students will study ethics, policies and classroom strategies, along with other topics that make up the education field.

Plainsman Press Honors from TCCJA
by Ray Buffington, editor-in-chief

Staff members of South Plains College’s newspaper, the Plainsman Press, earned four awards from the Texas Community College Journalism Association during the fall 2005 convention recently held in Amarillo at the Holiday Inn.

Jacob Tucker of Paducah earned second place for his Division II feature writing entry “From Levelland to Hollywood,” a story about former SPC student Kinna McInroe and the journey she took in order to reach her dreams of becoming an actress. Tucker is a sophomore and is majoring in print journalism and public relations. He is also currently the feature editor of the Plainsman Press.

 Ray Buffington, a freshman from Lubbock, won third place for his Division II column entry “Hooked on Homos – Stereotypes are not for me,” an opinion piece explaining the stereotypes homosexual men are given by others, and the different kinds of lifestyles they actually live. In August, Buffington began serving his first semester as editor-in-chief of the Plainsman Press.

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