Educators Rising Members Shine at Chapter Officer Leadership Academy
Launch the media gallery 1 playerStudents from Plainview High School's Educators Rising chapter recently participated in the Chapter Officer Leadership Academy (COLA), a comprehensive virtual training event held on Thursday, September 10. The day-long program provided student leaders with essential skills and networking opportunities to enhance their leadership capabilities for the upcoming school year. Attending from Plainview were Landon Hergert, Ashlyn Forbes, Lucea Miller, Josie Choat and Teacher Leader Ronita Jacobsen.
The COLA event featured a structured schedule designed to equip chapter officers with effective leadership tools. Members began with an energizing Opening Session titled “Dream Big, Plan Bigger: Building a POW with Awards in Mind”. The session included chapter roll call, interactive icebreaker activities, door prize opportunities, and an overview of expectations for the 2026-27 Educators Rising year. Members also were provided an opportunity to align their Program of Work to chapter awards. During mid-morning breakout sessions, Plainview students strategically divided into small groups to attend sessions aligned with their leadership goals and chapter needs. Available sessions included: "Lead Big: Running Effective Chapter Meetings”, “Serve Big: Community Service with an Impact”, “Share Big: Social Media with Purpose”, “Dream Big: Running for State and National Office”, “Engage Big: Get Involved and Get Connected”, and “Grow Big: Recruiting and Retaining members”.
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Jacobsen participated in the Teacher Leader breakout session "Teacher Leader Q&A" led by the state advisor. This session provided leaders direct access in planning for the year and networking with experienced educators and mentors across the state.
The afternoon featured independent chapter planning time, where officers worked collaboratively using materials provided by Educators Rising State Leadership. This productive session included chapter activity brainstorming, SMART goal development, comprehensive Program of Work creation, event calendar planning, and awards recognition correlation with projects.
According to Ronita Jacobsen, Teacher Leader at Plainview High School, the participating officers returned from COLA with enhanced leadership skills, practical strategies, and a clear vision for the school year ahead. "The leadership skills and planning tools they gained will benefit not only our Educators Rising chapter but our entire school community," Jacobsen noted.
The newly trained officers are expected to implement their acquired skills through upcoming Educators Rising events and activities throughout the school year, contributing to what promises to be the chapter's most successful year yet. “They have great ideas for competition work and their chapter projects are already being planned. They would love to collaborate with other organizations to make them a success.” Jacobsen added.
For more information about Plainview High School's Educators Rising chapter or membership opportunities, contact Ronita Jacobsen. Educators Rising is a career and technical student organization that helps ensure students interested in a career in education have the experience and skills they need to be ready for the classroom. The mission of Educators Rising is to create a new generation of highly skilled educators by guiding young people on a path from high school through college and into their teaching careers.