No matter what else is going on during the school day, Emily Pruckno ’23MED ensures reading is the one activity her second-grade students never miss out on because she knows how important it is to their development and the difference it can make in their lives.
“I love seeing kids learn something new and get to experience something fun and engaging and seeing how that can transform their view of education,” Pruckno said.
Pruckno’s desire to transform the way her students view education was recognized when she was named the 2023 Chatham County Teacher of the Year. In receiving the award, Pruckno was honored not only for the work she does with her students at Perry W. Harrison Elementary School, but also for the support she shows her fellow teachers, in ensuring they are surrounded by marigolds, which is what she calls people who make a special effort to encourage, inspire and offer a support system for each other.
“We are better together, and we just need each other,” Pruckno said.
Pruckno said she makes a special effort to ask about her colleagues’ lives outside of school and she tries to recognize when another teacher is facing a challenge and is in need of help.
“It’s creating that open dialogue and [ensuring] that everyone feels like a part of the school family,” Prucno said. “We want all kids to see that we first and foremost model our care so that we can have a community that works in our classroom that models the care as well.”
Pruckno also knew she wanted to earn a master’s degree, but she wanted to wait until she found the right program. It wasn’t until she moved from Ohio to North Carolina that she learned about the NC State’s College of Education’s New Literacies and Global Learning: K-12 Reading concentration. Her passion for literacy made it the perfect fit.
“It was the best thing for me, just getting to really dig deep into things that I feel passionate about,” Pruckno said. “Especially in this culture today, where we are seeing a lot of gaps with COVID and how that just totally impacted those young readers. There’s a huge need for kids, in this time, to have really high quality reading instruction.”
What Pruckno appreciated about the College of Education’s K-12 reading concentration was how she was immediately able to use what she learned in her classroom.
“When I started my master’s, it was applicable right away — I loved that,” Pruckno said. “My professors, they truly were remarkable in coaching and guiding us.”
Although Pruckno took her classes remotely, she said it did not affect her learning experience, and that her professors and cohort of fellow master’s students made her feel supported.
“Even though I was off campus, I felt so connected and so cared for,” Pruckno said.
As a teacher, she ensures the same sense of community thrives in her school and classroom.
“When I think about my journey, as an educator, when things get hard or things get tough, I think it kind of goes back to this idea of relying on each other and using each other as your support system to better the educational journey for others,” Pruckno said.
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