Bluefield College student Emily Minter was recently selected as a recipient of a prestigious scholarship from the Virginia Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (VACTE).
A BC junior majoring in interdisciplinary studies for teacher licensure in elementary education, Minter was one of just three education students from 37 colleges and universities across the Commonwealth to receive the award.
“Emily is an outstanding student, who has a genuine heart for service,” said Dr. Donna Watson, director of the BC Teacher Education Program. “She not only taught in China as part of her field experience, but she also spends summers working with children in poverty.”
The award, a $1,000 scholarship from the VACTE, is designed to recognize teacher education students who demonstrate a balanced program of study in liberal arts and professional education and who work with children in and outside of the classroom as part of their educational experience.
Minter, a BC honors student from King George, Virginia, taught English as a second language to children in China during a December 2010 trip to the country. She also is president of BC’s Global Student Organization and a member of Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities. In addition, she is a frequent member of the BC President’s List for maintaining an exemplary academic grade point average.
“Because Bluefield College has a study abroad program, I was able to take courses at the Jaingsu Institute, a teacher training school, in Nanjing, China,” Minter said about her qualifications for the VACTE Scholarship. “Through my experiences there, I have become more sensitive to student diversity and methods of teaching that are different from a Western perspective.”
Minter also credited her Bluefield College professors, “who care and are devoted to (her) success and helping (her) obtain (the) goal of becoming a teacher.” That personal attention, she said, motivates her to become a teacher who demonstrates the same kind of care.
“Unless teachers take an interest in their students, learning will be greatly hindered,” Minter said. “My excitement grows daily when I visualize my future class full of eager students with me as their eager teacher ready to mold their minds and change the world.”