Think back to when you were a student, back-to-school shopping, finding your classroom, and the exciting lessons that would soon fill your day. The first day of school jitters that were calmed by the friendly, welcoming face, and celebrating the “ah ha” moments when you finally figured out how to solve the problem. Then there was the time in kindergarten, when you went to the restroom but couldn’t remember the way back to your classroom. As panic set in, that friendly face walked around the corner and they knew exactly where your classroom was. These champions make math exciting and words come to life through reading and writing, they stood beside you and cheered as you mastered kickball, that difficult note, or the masterpiece that needed a little finesse. Although everyone’s school experience was different, teachers are the common thread throughout classrooms and schools. They are the first to welcome you to a new class, they spend extra time working through a challenging problem, and they give you a high five when you accomplish your goals.

St. Vrain is the proud home to nearly 2,000 teachers who spend their days preparing our students for the future. Join us in celebrating our teachers and learn what they enjoy about teaching, why they became teacher and what their favorite memory is from the days they spent as a student in the classroom.

Thank you to all of our teachers.

Getting to know:
Lauren Rider
Math
Altona Middle School

What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I love being with the students and the energy they bring to the classroom. Most people think I’m crazy for teaching middle school, but I enjoy having the opportunity to see kids grow and develop their personalities over those tumultuous middle school years.

Briefly tell us about the path you took to becoming a teacher?
To be perfectly honest, I never even considered becoming a teacher until college. I was going to be an astronomer. I had all of the necessary pre-requisite skills including extra math and science classes in high school. Heck, I’d even built my own telescope for fun in middle school. Upon arriving at CU, I realized rather quickly that although I’d been ‘good at math’ throughout my school career, in college they expected you to UNDERSTAND and APPLY your knowledge. I had never really been asked to do this and I fell flat on my face. After some tears and soul searching, I decided that I would become a teacher in the hopes that my students would not be in the same position as I when they moved on to higher education.

What is your favorite memory from when you were a student?
My favorite memory from when I was a student is from my 8th grade US History class. Mrs. Eberly had us create a Civil War era newspaper describing a battle from the Civil War; however, we also had to fill the newspaper with other tidbits like local news, events and of course, obituaries. I had a lot of fun writing silly life summaries for my friends and classmates. It was definitely an assignment that stuck with me through all of these years. I also helps that Mrs. Eberly was a great teacher who held everyone to very high standards. Where ever you are, Mrs. Eberly, thank you!