Teacher Feature
In this feature article, Aylah Graves discusses the importance of our amazing staff by highlighting one of our Project Youth+ advisors at GPHS, Kelly Rogney.
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Teacher Feature: Kelly rogney
Teacher Feature: Kelly rogney
By Aylah Graves
By Aylah Graves
Kelly Rogney has been one of our Project Youth Plus advisors at GPHS for 21 months. She has experience teaching middle school and has owned a bookstore. Kelly was also a Youth Transition Specialist Coordinator at Crater, a Job Developer in Jackson and Josephine County and now works to support students at our school. She did not always have this career on her plans but states, “This was the happiest of accidents...and has been my dream job since I started working with PY+.”
PY+ is an organization that works in Grants Pass to provide students opportunities to flourish in their future, including career, college, and life goals and plans. Kelly says that she chose her career path because she “Absolutely loves youth development and all the many facets to providing opportunities for youth to engage with the world around them...and consider as well as pursue their dreams.” Students need to have adults in their lives that are invested and enable the pursuit of success.
Other than having influential teachers, students also need other adults to be role models outside of the classroom. One of the most rewarding parts of her job is “getting to know the youth of today...learning how they think, providing insight to them as well as learning from them...the relationships inspire me to live more, appreciate more...and learn more.”
Because of her job, she gains the perspectives of high school students many may not get the chance to see. Kelly’s work helps to provide those opportunities for students that make positive impacts on students' lives and allow them to grow from them. These opportunities are for the students to choose to do. In a classroom setting, students may not be motivated to benefit from opportunities but, through this program, she gets to see them make those choices and grow from them.
Kelly is recognized by the students involved in PY+ as passionate. One of these students adds, “Kelly holds the value of hard work and perseverance high.” According to GPHS sophomore Camille Noriega, who is involved in PY+, “Kelly has been such an amazing and supportive person in my life. She’s always there to offer advice and assistance on just about anything I need.” She also adds, “Her optimism has really influenced me to persevere and be optimistic just like her and her kindness, good communication skills, stories, and generosity are what I appreciate the most about her”.
Kelly has a lot of advice she would give to high school students. One of the most valuable pieces would be: “Take every opportunity given to you in high school...absorb all you can from your teachers, coaches, advisors...do as much as you can...go to all the dances, participate in sports, join clubs, make new friends, try out for theater, do everything you can...because this is the time of your life that you have access to so many new experiences in one place...and the teachers, staff, and advisors are for you...and want to support you. Do all you can to not let fear get in the way of trying new things, seeing new things, learning new things.”
Kelly has been a great example of the many exemplary staff involved in the everyday lives of students. Not only does she help prepare kids for college and careers, but she also does the behind-the-scenes tasks that add up, from giving out snacks to being someone to complain to about math class. It is important to recognize the people who make a difference. Thank you, Kelly, for everything you do.
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