#14- How to Be a Game-Changer by Empowering Your Students for a Better Future with FCCLA Sandy Spavone
Have you heard of the FCCLA? Are you passionate about empowering and engaging your students as an educator? On the show today, we have Sandy Spavone, the executive director of FCCLA as she offers the value of the organization and the power of engaging and empowering students as a teacher.
FCCLA is a career and technical student organization that stands for Family Career and Community Leaders of America. It is based on family and consumer sciences courses in middle and high schools across the country. It was initially formed 75 years ago for future homemakers to arm students with life skills they would need to be successful in their families.
Their purpose is to empower and engage the youth to explore their career interests in the future. The organization advocates for you as a teacher through legislation and with education leaders about the importance of family consumer sciences in the education system. The program also provides opportunities for teachers to grow as an educator and caring adults for youths.
Sandy enjoyed the peace of being in the student government leadership as an English teacher in high school and hence pursued applying for a job at FCCLA. She began as a program assistant and worked herself up to be the executive director of the FCCLA organization she is today. She has used her burning passion to bring partnerships that support what they do in preparing students in their career journeys.
This COVID-19 period is the best time to keep on learning as educators and reflect that to our students and show them that even as we stumble, we can rise up and continue with the journey. Your job should be to empower students especially after you get past your first year of teaching which is the toughest.
Learn to make your students safe with you before they can get comfortable outside of it. You can achieve this by giving many assignments that will give you an opportunity for one on ones where you can talk to them about their dreams and goals. Use the pandemic and virtual education space as a good opportunity for you to connect with your students and be a more caring adult.
She talks about the FCCLA at the table competition that they held a few years ago. It involved students talking about alcohol use with their families during dinner that they had prepared themselves. It was a great opportunity for students to engage with their parents and inspire them to do the same in the future. She shares how they substituted their in-person conference celebrating their 75th anniversary with a virtual one due to Coronavirus. It was challenging but they did it and was successful and had an impact.
Many students join FCCLA to travel since most of them are from rural areas. The ‘new normal’ as Sandy explains is for a while but the virtual world will last and has many advantages. The virtual world has come with its issues and everyone has their opinion on how it is working or not working for them especially in the education sector.
Servant leadership is what you should be striving for as a leader- delegating tasks that you can willingly do yourself. Learn to be caring and compassionate towards those you’re leading for them to respect and inspire them.
The teachers that stand out from the rest are not afraid to speak out and empower their students while allowing them to take on leadership opportunities. They are not stopped by hard circumstances like COVID-19 and find a way even when there’s no way. These are the game-changers in the classroom and the education system.
- Key Moments:
- [0:25] She explains the meaning of FCCLA and the purpose behind it.
- [2:50] Learn the importance of both students and teachers joining the FCCLA.
- [6:24] She shares her journey from a classroom teacher to the executive director of the FCCLA.
- [10:42] The opportunity to grow that the COVID-19 period is providing you as a teacher.
- [12:19] How to add value to the lives of your students by learning and sharing what you learn.
- [16:05] How to touch the lives of your students outside of the classroom by showing interest and care.
- [19:30] She shares some of the programs the FCCLA has conducted that she believes have had immense success.
- [24:14] The advantages and disadvantages of the virtual world on organizations and the education system at large.
- [31:13] Learning to develop and embrace the spirit of servant leadership.
- [33:33] The qualities of teachers who change the classroom and education game- the standouts.
- [36:13] Sandy answers some random fun questions.
Quotes:
“Students have to feel safe with you first in the classroom before they’re going to work with you outside of the classroom.” – Sandy Spavone [16:05]
“If you’re asking anyone else to do something, you should be willing to do it yourself first.”– Sandy Spavone [31:26]
Contact FCCLA:
Website: https://fcclainc.org/
Contact Nick:
Website: https://nickzizi.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickzizi/?hl=en
