Stacey K. Everett has been named Teacher of the Year at River City Early College (RCEC), where she teaches ninth-grade economics and government, and now she finds herself on the list of nominees for the 2024 Educator of the Year award.

Everett is a finalist for the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce’s Educator of the Year award. One elementary and one secondary teacher of the year will be announced at the Chamber Luncheon in February. The winner of each award will receive $1,000 from Ameristar Casino and the runner-ups for each award will receive $500 from Mutual Credit Union.  

Everett, who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in history from Northern Michigan University, a Master of Science degree in historic preservation from the University of Vermont and an Ed. Cert. In education 7-12 from the University of Mississippi, has been teaching for almost five years and said RCEC’s unique environment helps her prepare her students for the future. 

“I teach freshmen at RCEC, a group of students who are essentially junior high kids that have two years (instead of the usual four) to prepare for the demands of being independent, full-time college students,” Everett said. “I approach my classes as intensive crash courses designed to help students function at a higher academic level. Expectations are elevated, assignments are more in-depth, deadlines are tighter, and the pace of instruction pushes students to keep up.”

Everett has a background in museum education and said she approaches history from a perspective that goes beyond just dates and names, believing history is more than just what is written in textbooks. And she said she already sees the fruits of her labors in her students’ successes.

“It wasn’t until last year that I truly understood the impact of my work,” she said. “My first group of students, now seniors, shared with me how much they appreciated the skills they had learned. They told me that without the tools I had taught them, they wouldn’t have been able to navigate college successfully. Students who had once struggled with lectures and note-taking now said, ‘Oh, that professor teaches just like you, so it’s easy to follow,” or, ‘I’m so glad you forced us to learn MLA format and research skills. I would have been in serious trouble without that.’”

And Everett said teaching economics and government through the lens of history is the perfect way to not just teach students about the past, but to prepare them for the future.

“In my U.S. Government class, we build our understanding of history, starting with Tudor England and moving through the English Civil War, the American Revolution and U.S. history,” she said. “They come to me with a limited understanding of the history that has shaped us and so much of what the United States is is us growing and learning from our mistakes to make everything better than the past.”

Understanding that history and how it can shape the future is powerful knowledge, Everett said, adding that helping students discover that is the reason she is now in the classroom.

“I love seeing my students learn the power within themselves,” she said.