Lenawee County teacher shares ‘great rewards’ with aspiring educators

August 14, 2025August 19, 2025

By Brenda Ortega
MEA Voice Editor

When high schooler Rebecca Cox realized she wanted to be an art teacher, she wondered if she had what it takes, so she signed up for the Education Careers program at the Lenawee Intermediate School District (LISD) Tech Center.

“I knew I really liked the art part — I just needed to see if I would be good at the teacher part, and I wanted to learn the aspects that you don’t know about what it means to be a teacher.”

She got some insights as a first-year student at her county’s hub for Career and Technical Education (CTE). The program showed her hidden parts of the profession such as differentiating lessons for students with disabilities and connecting with students who’ve experienced trauma.

And she got some answers about herself in the form of two unrelated events that made her eager to return for year two as a senior this fall.

First, some of the youngsters in her elementary school placement who were the hardest to reach and connect with were the ones who ran up on the last day for the biggest end-of-school hugs.

Second, she and a friend competed at the MEA-sponsored Ed Rising Conference at Wayne State University, won a state title, and got to travel to Orlando, Florida, for the national conference in June. Cox and senior Makayla Nieman competed in the children’s book category.

“It was nerve-wracking but very exciting and such an amazing experience,” Cox said.

MEA member Jody Hillard, the instructor for the Education Careers program at the LISD-Tech Center, admits her photos became a little blurry when 10 of her students appeared on stage to claim state titles at the Michigan Ed Rising Conference in March.

“I was like a proud mom, crying and running down the aisle screaming,” she said.

Aspiring educators Rebecca Cox (right) and Makayla Nieman competed in the children’s book category at Ed Rising.

Hillard herself is a product of the LISD-Tech Center program and spent 14 years as a preschool and kindergarten teacher after earning a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Siena Heights University. She took over four years ago from the instructor she had as a teen.

When MEA partnered with Ed Rising to start a Michigan affiliate of the national organization, Hillard served on the advisory committee that helped to organize the two annual statewide conferences held so far. More than 500 students attended in 2025.

Students at the conference attend high-quality breakout sessions on topics of interest just as professional educators do, and they can choose to compete in one of several categories including lesson planning, interactive bulletin board, public speaking, and ethical dilemma.

“I think it’s important for young people to be exposed to leadership roles and have the opportunity for networking with others who share their passion for education,” Hillard said. “It’s great to see so many potential educators in one positive space — they just love it.”

Hillard’s goal is to show students challenges and struggles of the profession but always to balance that with rewards. “As exhausting as it can be — because we do get a lot piled upon us — there are great rewards, because you actually get to see the impact you’re having on lives.”

For Cox, who will graduate from a class of 25 at Morenci High School, it was empowering to compete at state and national conferences among aspiring educators from all over. She was chosen to serve on the National Ed Rising Student Panel advising on next year’s conference.

Cox and Nieman wrote and illustrated a children’s book, My Mighty Maple, about a girl who tells her fears to a tree. “At the end of the story she’s learned she’s capable of doing things she thinks are hard, and she can’t stop herself from worrying but she can overcome her worries,” Cox said.

The duo presented the book to a panel of judges at competition, but first they got a stamp of approval from second graders in their careers placement. “We had these little kids telling us, ‘Oh, you made that? It’s really good.’ And they reassured us that, Yes — we can do this.”

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