'Beyond the Campus' St. Mary's students changing education in South Bend

There are nearly a dozen colleges or universities in St. Joseph County – each of them teaching the next generation of doctors, lawyers, teachers and many other professions. But these campuses are not islands. Many students are active in our community. Today we begin a new monthly series called "Beyond the Campus" – to focus on the ways local college students are making a difference.  
  
At St. Anthony's de Padua in South Bend, two St. Mary's College students are about to start on a brave adventure: giving paints to third-graders. But for them it's an adventure worth taking.

"I think the best thing and the thing I get a kick out of is seeing the kid's imagination," says Katey Wagner.
 
Wagner and Katie Bennett are St. Mary’s seniors student teaching this year at St. Anthony's. But they aren't just teaching the basics – instead, they enhanced the arts program at the grade school.

"It was equally beneficial," explains Wagner, "the kids really liked the art programs and the art lessons we taught. And Katie and I really learned a lot about the different kinds of art. We did creative writing, music, theatre, drama and then visual arts."

Over the summer the women developed the program and then implemented it in the fall. They call it an arts enrichment program. They brought in artists from St. Mary's and taught the students different arts projects, everything from painting to dancing.
 
9-year-old Luke Miller says he enjoyed the activities all year

"It is very creative and I do a lot of things I don't think I could do and I have a lot of fun doing it," says Miller.
 
School administrators say the benefit to students like Luke is written on the walls – today Luke is making a shamrock while the artwork from his past projects decorate the classroom.

For Wagner and Bennett, though, the benefit was more than just the artwork.

"I got to know the kids a lot better. Because you see a lot of their personalities coming out through the art work," says Bennett.

"I hope we served as a positive role model for them," says Wagner, "that is the most important thing with student teaching and that is why I love it so much…serving as a good constant in the children's lives and good role model for them."

That is the true test of a strong teacher – and also what drives fellow St. Mary's student teacher Mari Cardenas. Cardenas student teaches at Clay High School but she is also determined to make a difference in the lives of her students.

Cardenas moved to the U.S. from Mexico when she was 11 years old. She didn't speak any English and struggled to learn in grade school. Now she is a St. Mary's senior ready to graduate.

A few years ago she applied to become an American citizen on her own. She received naturalization about two years ago.

Right now she is student teaching Spanish at Clay High School. She plans her own lessons, creates her own activities, grades papers and tutors. She will soon start student teacher ESL (English as a Second Language) in Elkhart. That is her passion – helping others who are struggling like she did. 

"If I am able to do something for somebody, if I know how to do something, why not share it with everybody else," says Cardenas, "I know the teaching field is difficult right now. But it is my calling. I feel like that is what I was born to do."

She was the first in her family to graduate high school. She applied to college on her own and when she graduates, she will be the first in her family to graduate college.

WSBT's series, "Beyond the Campus" will run the first Monday of every month.

The South Bend Tribune runs a weekly series. Coming up this Sunday, March 11th – Parents, do you need a remedy for bored children this summer? You can read about the camp opportunities offered by local colleges and universities in "Beyond the Campus" in the Community Section in this Sunday's South Bend Tribune.