When Ellie Sanford entered her sophomore year, she did not expect a Foundations in Education class to change the direction of her life.
Fortunately for Sanford, the passion of that class’s professor, Gabriel Gutiérrez, opened her mind to being a teacher.
“The way he taught and the enthusiasm that he brought to class set everything up like it was a cliffhanger,” Sanford said. “He talked about what education is, how it can be fun, and gave snippets of teaching. I realized I could see myself doing that, and I love it.”
Now, Sanford is graduating this May with a degree in secondary education and history at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO). This fall, she will begin a social studies teaching position at Buena Vista High School, where she will instruct classes in human geography, law and juvenile justice, and a Native American studies elective.
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“I wanted to be the teacher that I didn’t have in high school,” she said. “That was a point in my time where I really struggled, and I didn’t get that support. So, I want to serve that role for these kids.”
While teaching high school may seem daunting, Sanford chose to work at this level because she is drawn to the kind of content and conversations that are possible. While she has also worked with younger students, she especially enjoys teaching subjects like government and history, where older students can think more deeply about the world around them and the historical context that shaped nations.
“I think I just interact better with older students, just because I feel like that’s my personality,” she said.
Her love of history began early, first through Greek mythology and then a broader interest in ancient civilizations. She then found her interest in American history when the Broadway production “Hamilton: The Musical” was released. At UNO, that interest grew into a social studies concentration and a minor in Holocaust and genocide studies. Sanford said she eventually hopes to teach history as a college professor, but for now she is eager to be in a high school classroom.
Along with her preparation with education classes on campus, much of her preparation has taken place at Buena Vista High School, where Sanford completed multiple practicum and clinical experiences. She kept asking to return, built relationships with the school community, and ultimately earned a job offer there.
“I’ve been at Buena Vista the whole time, so the whole time, I’ve just requested to come back,” she said. “And then I ended up getting a job, so it worked out in my favor.”
Sanford described her first practicum experience as a turning point. Being placed in a real classroom, she said, quickly showed her both the intensity of the work and the joy that comes with it.
“You just get thrown into the deep end, and that is what works best,” she said. “It is scary, but you find out really fast whether this is the job for you or not.”
Her favorite part of teaching is watching students begin to understand a concept for themselves.
“It’s the light bulb moment,” Sanford said. “When they ask me a question and then they’re like, ‘Oh, so this is like this,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, exactly.’ It’s the greatest moment.”
Now in a clinical practice, a more immersive student-teaching role that lasts for 16 weeks, she essentially leads her own classroom of senior high school students under the guidance of a teacher mentor.
Sanford spends full school days student-teaching and says the experience has given her a realistic picture of a high school teacher, including lesson planning and classroom management. She also pointed to how she emphasized team building among her students to build trust.
“Every day is a learning moment,” she said. “But I love it. It’s one of the things that keeps me going. I have the biggest support system at UNO that helps me. All the professors and the counselors in my four years have been amazing to work with.”
