School and Community Winter 2023

Far left: Stacy Blakley is all smiles at St. James Middle School! Left: Blakley displays a creative collage of personal memories on her classroom wall.

Which subjects and grade levels do you currently teach? My official title is Keyboarding Teacher, but that hasn’t been updated in a few years. I am currently teaching the eighth grade careers class, seventh and eighth grade agriculture and sixth grade math. What do you look forward to every day when you come to school? What gets you in the car and driving down to St. James from your home in Rolla? My favorite part of coming to school every day is the relationships that I have, not only with my students, but with my coworkers and, obviously, with our service dog. Just getting to know them and being there for their ups and downs, their struggles and the fun times and the hard times. I know that we’ve built a family here and we really do depend upon each other. We have all of the good times and all the bad times, but we’re here for each other. And that’s what people ask me - why do I teach in St. James and why do I travel? That’s why... It’s often said flippantly that we’re like family, but I really think that we’re the functional part of a family.

When did you initially join the association? Was teaching your first career?

My husband was a teacher before I became one. I used to work in mental healthcare with a degree in psychology. I worked with adults with developmental disabilities and was a program coordinator for an agency. We started having children and I decided to stay home with my four girls for many years. After my youngest began preschool, I started back to school and got certified to be a teacher. Education became my passion and then MSTA became my passion. I decided immediately that I was going to be an SMSTA member and even went to convention with a friend. Sitting in that convention, I remember thinking, “I’m gonna do this. I am committed. I want to be a leader in MSTA.” After watching your lunch duty shift today in the cafeteria, I can tell that your students are very eager to approach you and it seems like you can relate to them on certain levels. Would you agree? Definitely. One of the reasons this school is such a good fit for me is because we participate in the Capturing Kids’ Hearts discipline program. What that means is that we build relationships and focus on

Meet Mookie! That wasn’t just any golden ball of fluff running down the hallway - Mookie is an honorary MSTA member and therapy dog at St. James Middle School. He comes to school on most days with his owner, guidance counselor Sarah Baker. Mookie spends his days bringing joy to students and staff. Blakley cites Mookie’s calm, loving disposition for many happy moments in the classroom. Students are comforted by his presence and often participate in activities to earn the opportunity to read with Mookie.

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