'She teaches with kindness'
Apr. 24—When Cumberland University President Paul Stumb began to read excerpts from recommendation letters, Southside Elementary School 3rd grade teacher Jessica Roper began to realize that the 2023-24 Wilson County Teacher of the Year might be her.
"When my youngest daughter was entering her grade, I knew that I wanted her in this teacher's class," a colleague wrote. "She's a teacher whom I aspire to be like. There are so many teachers who love and care for their students, but no one has the heart for their kids like she does. She teaches with kindness, compassion, empathy, and has a desire to inspire her students to try their very best both inside and outside the classroom."
Southside Elementary School Principal Chareda Sims wrote that Roper creates a positive and engaging learning environment, which encourages student growth.
"She always looks for ways to support every student in her classroom," Miller wrote. "If you want to see students excited to learn, visit her classroom. If you want to see students work through a productive struggle, visit her classroom."
When Stumb read from a former student's letter, it fully hit Roper that he was talking about her.
"This teacher was always a person you could count on with anything you needed," the student wrote. "When you need someone to talk to, someone to help, or literally anything, she's the person I could go to. She's been my inspiration in so many ways. I'm so thankful that I got to call her my teacher and my coach."
At the realization that she'd earned the title of the 2023-24 Wilson County Teacher of the Year, Roper found herself overwhelmed and grateful.
"When they got to the student letter, it was actually one of my players, Taylor, who I taught in second grade for my first year of teaching," Roper said. "She played on and off 5th-8th grade and she's a freshman in high school. When they started reading that, I was like, 'Okay, yeah, that's me.' It was just very overwhelming and very humbling to receive something that means so much."
Before beginning her time in the classroom, Roper earned a bachelor's degree in child growth and learning at Cumberland University, followed by a master's in teaching and special education.
"I originally wanted to be a zookeeper, but I went to school as a biology major and being a softball player and a biology major was not working out," Roper said. "I needed to switch majors and when I transferred to Cumberland, they were like 'Hey, the major you're in actually would be great for education, do you want to try?' And I said, 'Sure.' "
Once Roper went into schools to begin observing other teachers, she knew that education would be the right fit for her. Moreover, she found that Southside Elementary was the right fit after observing and student teaching there.
"It's been really cool to see the kids I student taught with, leave Southside and go on into high school," Roper said. "I think that's the best thing about Southside, is that you get to build those relationships year after year, and see the kids past elementary school and into middle school."
For the past eight years, Roper has taught and coached softball at Southside Elementary.
"Not much has changed," Roper said. "There's different protocols and there's always something new you get to try and new curriculum, but the kids are kids. It's a new adventure every year."
In the classroom, Roper is all about helping her students make connections.
"I tell stories and I tell them about a trapezoid," Roper said. "I say, 'As a kid, I knew what a trapezoid was because it looked like a volcano, and you don't want to get trapped in a volcano.' "
Roper knew that her students would be excited to hear the
news.
"They're going to go crazy," Roper said. "I already know that they're going to scream, and I'll probably get bombarded with hugs. They are the biggest supporters and the biggest critics. They are the sweetest."