Preston Bassham, junior special education major with an added endorsement in middle and elementary school, is one of those people on campus that everyone at least recognizes. This year, he is the RA of Jarman, and if you went to Trivium this past Thursday evening, you probably saw him dancing wildly and yelling louder than anyone else. I think Bassham can pretty much strike up a conversation with anybody, like he did with me when we met in Barefoots.
Rachel Durham, junior elementary education major with an added endorsement in early childhood education, complements Bassham nicely. When Durham walked into Barefoots, she instantly greeted us with a soft smile and sat down. Bassham and Durham serve as the president and vice president of STEA (Student Tennessee Education Association), respectively. They make a good pair― Bassham is enthusiastic and can talk about any subject for several minutes while Durham sorts through her thoughts first before answering. It made the interview for me pretty simple. When I asked a question, Bassham would say the first thing on his mind while Durham waited patiently and supplemented his answer when he finished. They bring this same partnership when they plan events and meetings for STEA.
“In past years, STEA was a big thing on campus,” Bassham said. “We had multiple awards and were a bigger chapter in the state. Last year, our goal as an officer team was to rebuild that size and gather members. This year, we are trying to get involvement in meetings and across campus.”
One of the things the leadership is trying to advertise is that STEA is not just for education members.
“We just want to help educate all people about school, children and ways that you can help children to learn and grow,” Durham said.
Both Bassham and Durham have known they have wanted to work with children for a while. Durham, though, tried to fight the education route for a little bit.
“I grew up serving in the children’s ministry at church and was told that I would be a good teacher,” Durham said. “Since I was told that so much, I thought that I wanted to do something different because teaching seemed like the obvious thing.”
Durham tried looking in other areas, but eventually she ended up in elementary education, recognizing her love for learning and the desire to instill that love into others.
Bassham also recognized that he was interested in education at a young age. It wasn’t until eighth grade, though, when his close friend got in a car wreck that left her with traumatic brain injury, that he fully realized this interest.
“I got to be a part of her rehabilitation in special education,” Bassham said. “And I feel like that’s where God is calling me.”
Bassham and Durham are passionate about informing people all over campus about child education. People from all different majors, like nursing and social work, work with children, so it is important for them to know what children are facing and how they learn best. Not to mention, most college students will become parents one day, and knowing more about education will help them in raising their children.
With the help of their faculty advisor Mandy Cates, director for accreditation and assessment for Union’s College of Education, the leadership team of STEA has been able to bring in all sorts of guest lecturers, like people from the College of Pharmacy, who taught attendees how to use an epipen. Some upcoming guests include the Jackson Police Department who will speak about violence and drug use in schools, a school psychologist who will come to speak about how children can be affected and a speaker from the College of Pharmacy who will come and talk about what prescriptions students take.
STEA meets the third Monday of every month at 10 a.m. in BAC 42. Bassham and Durham encourage everyone to come, even if they aren’t an education major. They want people to ask questions and learn to value education. An upcoming event STEA is having is the Buddy Walk on October 5 on the Great Lawn. They are looking for volunteers, so if you are interested, you can contact them.
To get in touch with the leadership team of STEA, you can find them on Instagram (@unionustea) or on Facebook (Union University STEA).
Photo courtesy of Anne Richoux