Jacobsen Earns 4th at National Educators Rising
Shayla Jacobsen represented Plainview’s Educators Rising Chapter at the National Educators Rising Conference held in Orlando, Fl. June 26-29.
While at the conference Jacobsen competed in the Job Interview Varsity Division event and received 4th place. During the awards ceremony she was recognized as a semi-finalist placing in the top 10 in her event with over 50 other competitors. She will receive her scores and comments later this month. Jacobsen also participated in the National Signing Day Event where she signed her commitment to study Early Childhood Education at Northeast Community College this fall and continue to Wayne State College the following year. Jacobsen attend the College Innovation Fair meeting with several college representatives from across the nation along with representatives from different education corporations displaying their educational products. She was able to participate in a virtual reality classroom and even received some display items to take home. Jacobsen attended several breakout sessions with a few of her favorites being Creating Artists in Early Childhood, Rhythms of Learning, Sprinkling Motivation Magic for School Success, Strategies to Bridge the Teacher Recruitment Gap, Math Adventures: Create and Play Your Own Board Game, Supercharge Your School and Clubs; Using AI to Boost Engagement and Creativity, and From Budget to Breakthrough: Practical Funding Solutions for Educators Rising Success.
PDK International hosted and kicked off its largest conference yet for its Educators Rising Career and Technical Student Organization that fosters the skills among middle, high school, and college students in their journey toward becoming educators. The conference “Empowering Future Leaders,” brought over 3,400 attendees from across the nation to participate in break-out sessions, competitions, contests, and professional learning, including the 150 plus Nebraska Delegates.
Keynoters at this year’s conference include Missy Testerman, the 2024 National Teacher of the Year and Nicholas Moore, the deputy assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Education’s office of Career and Technical and Adult Education.
This event also celebrates PDK International’s acquisition of the Future Educators Association in 1994, which was re-branded and re-imagined as Educators Rising in 2015. Since that time, Educators Rising has grown to include annually over 20,000 student members in over 1,300 chapters in middle and high schools across the nation. In addition, Educators Rising has collegiate chapters to support students embarking upon completion of their teaching degree after high school.
Chief operating officer Albert Chen remarked: “Educators Rising has been a trusted ally of districts who are struggling to attract an adequate number of high-quality teachers to their schools. This annual event gives students who want to change the world through their leadership as educators a chance to prove to themselves and their peers that they have a future in our public schools. Our organization is proud of the impact we’re not only having in these students’ lives, but across the nation in our ability to help districts respond to the challenges facing public education.”
80% of Educators Rising students are open to pursuing a future career in education, including through support roles, as teachers, administrators, and in specialty roles such as speech pathology, technology support, nursing, and more.
The 2026 Educators Rising National Conference will take place in Portland, Oregon.
About Educators Rising
In 2015, PDK International – in its 115-year commitment to the profession of education – launched Educators Rising, formerly the Future Educators Association (FEA). Today, Educators Rising is cultivating a new generation of highly skilled educators by guiding young people on a path from high school through college and into their teaching careers. By working with aspiring educators who reflect the demographics of their communities and who are passionate about serving those communities through public education, Educators Rising is changing the face of teaching.