Sierra Pauley long desired to help others improve their lives, which led to decades of work in customer service. Due to situational and financial barriers, she thought becoming a teacher was out of reach.
But an email from her daughters’ Lincoln Consolidated School District superintendent changed everything. The weekly note to parents included information about a new program at WCC to train teachers for much-needed educator roles.
Now, Pauley and 15 other teacher candidates are enrolled in their first WCC classes through a new partnership with Talent Together. Another 50 are expected to enroll in the Winter semester.
The program covers a teacher candidate’s tuition and offers other unique benefits.
Talent Together works with select colleges and universities statewide to train teachers for all 56 intermediate school districts. WCC is the consortium’s premier community college partner, educating teacher candidates with little to no previous college credit through online and virtual courses.
“Through this program, I am free to pursue one of the highest callings in America,” Pauley said. “Being able to inspire, improve and enrich a student’s life is an honor that I look forward to experiencing, and I couldn’t be more excited for what the future holds.
Prospective teachers take college courses online and simultaneously work full-time in schools, usually as a paraprofessional, to gain practical experience and fill educator needs. Pauley works by day as a special education paraprofessional at Childs Elementary School in Ypsilanti and takes WCC classes in the evenings.
She hopes to complete her teacher preparation and credentialing at Eastern Michigan University.
Learn more about the Talent Together partnership at mitalenttogether.org.
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This story appeared in the Winter 2025 edition of Launch magazine.
Tags: Launch Winter 2025, Talent Together, Teacher Preparation