SPARTA, Mich. — Dozens of high school students chipped in for our latest Teacher of the Week surprise at Sparta High School. This time, we’re recognizing a teacher who’s fairly new to the industry and clearly already making an impact.
After walking into the room filled with cheering high school students, Alison Laper said, “I had not a clue that this was happening.”
The principal, Stacey Rumsey, was eager to help with the surprise.
“I was thrilled. Alison’s great. So, we were really excited that we were going to be able to help her with this honor,” said Rumsey.
Even if she had to use a little deception to pull it off.
“They really got me. We were prepping for something else. I thought we were doing a whole other interview and then everyone started clapping and I was a little confused,” said Laper.
Rumsey described the confusion everyone could see on Laper’s face.
“When we walked in, she really thought that she was coming to tell you all about our Angel Tree project and then she’s clapping like ‘oh my gosh, this is awesome’ and we’re like, ‘it’s for you.’”
“Ever since I started at Sparta last year, I feel so supported in everything and this is just another level of that. That they wanted to set this up, make it a whole big thing and really just get me all the way to the end,” said Laper.
The career path was introduced to her as a child.
“A big part of my teaching journey comes from my grandma. She was an educator before she had kids. So, when she would watch me and help me out, she would talk about teaching and things like that. So, it was always something that I knew was an option for me,” said Laper.
She’s originally from the Chicago area but got stuck on West Michigan after attending Hope College. She’s now inspiring the next generation.
The teacher explained one strategy as, “Just keeping things light with them, especially during the winter seasons and things like that. It’s fun to talk to them, learn about them and be more familiar with the students because then when we do things that are harder and we work together, we can collaborate better if I know them.”
She’s thankful someone has taken notice.
“It’s amazing. I had no idea that this was happening. I’ve seen your segment and I think it’s great, but I had no idea that this was happening. So, I feel very lucky,” said Laper.
Principal Rumsey said, “Any recognition that you can give and support you can give to your teachers – they are changing the way that our kids are in school every day and they make a huge difference.”
“Teachers do these things every day and want their best for their students. So, I think that this is something awesome and it really helps. Like, for me, I feel really good right now and it’s really motivating,” said Laper.
If you have someone you’d like to nominate as our next Teacher of the Week, just text the word “teacher” to 616-559-1310.
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