“You’re the thermostat; your students are the thermometers,” said Loraine Richardson McCray, English teacher at Bellport Middle School, to a group of teacher education students at Stony Brook last Monday. “Whatever temperature you set, that’s the temperature they’re going to be at. So you have to really know who you are in your classroom in order to create the atmosphere that works best for you, but also works for them as you get to know their learning styles.”
Richardson McCray stood among a panel of educators who spoke at the fourth annual Teacher Meet and Greet, an event organized by Stony Brook’s Future Teachers Association (FTA) that aims to connect current students with experienced teachers who were once in their shoes.
“We started the Future Teachers Association for people pursuing careers in education to come together and hold events that help us better understand the profession,” said Rachel Liu, FTA co-founder and soon-to-be graduate of the combined Bachelor-Master of Arts in Teaching Mathematics program. “When I was a freshman, there wasn’t a huge education community here, so we wanted to build that up and create more networking opportunities at Stony Brook.”
Since its inception, FTA has done just that. Members meet throughout the semester to conduct mock interviews, make classroom-related arts and crafts, practice teaching lessons or write letters to be signed, sealed and read to their future students.
FTA also reaches beyond the walls of Stony Brook and into the surrounding community where many members of the club will one day work. They’ve delivered school supplies to local classrooms, become pen pals with middle school students, raised money toward childhood cancer research at Wolfiethon and much more.
“The events are very hands-on,” said junior Martin Guerrero, who’s slated to become the next FTA treasurer. “And listening to the panel tonight was a great experience. I got the opportunity to familiarize myself with some lovely Long Island teachers, and they had a lot of great information to disperse.”
The night kicked off with a buffet and mingling session and concluded with a raffle that sent several attendees home with FTA shirts and gift bags. A crafting station in the middle of the room buzzed with busy hands and conversation as mini glass jars were adorned with beads and stickers.
McCray, a veteran educator with several degrees and certificates from Stony Brook, was eager to share some key ways teaching has evolved over the years.
“It’s not just about ‘the class as a whole’ anymore,” she said. “We really do look at each individual student, whereas years ago it used to be ‘that’s the group, help them as you can.’ Now there’s no question — you have to individualize and differentiate, because the students need that.”
Eric Pentecoste, a current student teacher gearing up to graduate in the spring with his Master of Arts in Teaching Social Studies, attended the event to make connections and hear advice from educators who have taught for years. The sense of fulfillment they expressed finding in their jobs further motivated him to follow in their footsteps.
“Most of them talked about pursuing different careers only to fall in love with teaching and their school community,” he said. “To me, this only reiterates the strong passions that teachers have for their students and for the topics they are interested in.”
As the founding FTA members prepare to apply for teaching roles across Long Island, students like Guerrero will continue investing in professional development and community engagement opportunities for future teachers at Stony Brook.
“I am incredibly proud of the legacy we built with the Future Teachers Association, creating a community where aspiring teachers can find support, share resources and remind each other of their shared passion,” said Liu. “I am so excited to see all the potential this club can reach in the following years with its new leadership.”
— Sabrina Liguori
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