PRAIRIE GROVE -- For Becky Ramsey, new principal at Prairie Grove Elementary School, once a Tiger, always a Tiger.
Ramsey attended Prairie Grove schools from first-12th grade, graduated as a Tiger in 1980 from Prairie Grove High School and has spent a lot of her educational career at schools sporting the tiger mascot.
Her office is filled with tiger paraphernalia and Ramsey said she didn't have to buy a thing to set up her new space at the elementary school. She's been buying Tiger items for 30 years.
"I grew up a Tiger and now plan to end my career as a Tiger," said Ramsey, who began as co-principal with Brenda Marshell on July 1. "I've gone full circle."
Ramsey said she knew early on she wanted to be a teacher because of her fourth-grade teacher Peggy Parks. Parks, a long-time educator in Prairie Grove, passed away at the age of 89 on July 17, 2017. She taught fourth grade for 30 years in Prairie Grove.
"When I had her in fourth grade, I told her I'm going to be a teacher," Ramsey said. "I do what I do because of her. She was a very special person to me."
Ramsey earned her undergraduate degree in 1985 in elementary education from the University of Arkansas and immediately enrolled in the master's program for counseling.
However, she was asked to take over a long-term fifth-grade position at Root Elementary School in Fayetteville. She didn't go back to finish her degree in counseling but continued with a teaching career.
From Root Elementary, Ramsey taught in Texas for two years and then moved to the Little Rock School District for 21 years, where she worked as a teacher for 11 years before moving into administrative roles, first as an assistant principal and then as school principal at Terry Elementary, a school where 99 percent of the children qualified for the federal free and reduced-lunch program.
While in Little Rock, she achieved her master's degree in educational administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and also gained her principal certification. During this time, Ramsey said, she was teaching, going back to school and tutoring high-risk kids, disadvantaged high school students who were struggling.
In Little Rock, Ramsey was a Terry Elementary School Tiger.
After spending 20-plus years in Little Rock, Ramsey was ready to return to Northwest Arkansas and accepted a position as principal at West Fork Middle School, where she served 10 years as another Tiger.
Working at a middle school was a great experience, Ramsey said.
"What I learned about being a middle school principal was how critical it was that we get it right on the elementary level," Ramsey said. "In elementary school, we have to get them ready for the rigors of academic education on down the school road. We have to get it right in elementary school."
From West Fork, Ramsey moved into her current position in Prairie Grove, and she said she's glad to be back at an elementary setting because she considers working with elementary students to be her calling.
Ramsey has taught as a classroom teacher in all grades, first through sixth, and she said she purposely did that because she didn't want to be a principal who had not walked in the shoes of her teachers.
As a principal, Ramsey said she continues to have a passion for learning and considers herself a life-long learner.
"I'm the principal, but I'm still a teacher," Ramsey said. "I'm very much listening to my teachers. I want to be supportive of them and work together to problem solve."
For now, Prairie Grove Elementary has two principals but Marshell plans to retire at the end of this school year. Next year, Ramsey will be principal, with an assistant principal working alongside her.
Being a co-principal is working well, Ramsey said, because it has allowed her the opportunity to attend professional development workshops and other training sessions this year and ease into the principal's position for 2020-21.
"It's giving me a chance to sit back and observe this year and see what areas we need to focus on," Ramsey said. "It's been a blessing."
The main focus at Prairie Grove Elementary is on literacy, Ramsey said. Teachers are working as collaborative teams in professional learning communities. Prairie Grove, like many schools in Arkansas, has shifted its reading focus to a new initiative, called R.I.S.E., or Reading Initiative for Student Excellence.
"Reading is critical," Ramsey said. "You can't do anything until you can read."
Ramsey said she's been amazed at what she's learning at R.I.S.E. workshops. The program looks at the science of reading and teachers are learning how a child's brain works and how they can better teach children to learn.
As an elementary principal, Ramsey said her goal is to have every child reading on grade level by third grade. Prairie Grove has a "ways to go" to meet this goal, but Ramsey said she believes all children can learn. In some cases, she noted, teachers have to intervene to help some children learn.
"If a student is struggling in kindergarten and we don't intervene, the gap gets wider," Ramsey said. "Kids can get a strong foundation, but some kids need more time."
Ramsey said she is in the right place to finish out her educational career.
"This is an amazing place. The teachers here have such a love for the kids and the kids are amazing."
She adds, "I absolutely love what I do. I can't imagine doing anything else."
She also has enjoyed reconnecting with people she knew growing up.
Ramsey's family has its own roots that are a part of Prairie Grove's history.
Her father owned Crescent Department Store in downtown Prairie Grove for 18 years and was one of the founding members of Prairie Grove Chamber of Commerce. He was a legislator for many years, a lobbyist and served as president and CEO of Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce.
Ramsey remembers campaigning and knocking on doors for her father when he was running for the Arkansas Legislature.
She said she still marvels at the turn her life has taken to bring her back to Prairie Grove.
That's the coolest thing to me," Ramsey said. "As I get older, what an opportunity to come back to the same place that gave me a strong foundation. I had a great childhood here."
General News on 12/11/2019