Scott Berry (right) and Joshua Stemple are both current students at Wright State studying education and have spent the last year student teaching at Bellbrook High School.

By: Evi Fromm

Wright State University and Bellbrook High School have a long relationship working together to help future educators be the best teachers they can be. Scott Berry and Joshua Stemple are both current students at WSU studying secondary education and have spent the last year student teaching at Bellbrook High School.

Scott Berry is working with freshman and sophomore English classes here at BHS under the guidance of Mrs. Julie Giles and Ms. Katie Bills-Tenney. 

“I have always enjoyed reading, but up until my junior year of high school, I never really cared for English class,” Berry said. “After being fortunate enough to have English with a really impactful teacher, English became my favorite subject and the class I most looked forward to.”

“Mr. Berry is doing a great job, especially since he’s teaching two levels that have a new curriculum, which means that I haven’t taught any of the pieces before, either, so we are kind of learning things together,” English teacher Julie Giles said. “I really like how he is completely invested in being at BHS. He cares about the students and is working hard to do a good job. He also has some pretty good jokes for morning announcements!”

English is not the only subject with a student teacher, however. Joshua Stemple has been working with freshmen in Mrs. Beaty’s World Studies classes. 

“What drew me to social studies is that I LOVE HISTORY,” Stemple said. “To me, it is so fun to learn about what has happened in the past and, most importantly, how that past has shaped the current world.”

Berry and Stemple will be searching for teaching jobs for the upcoming 2025-2026 school year. 

 “Student teaching at Bellbrook has been an amazing experience in every way possible!” Berry said. “I could not have asked for a more supportive staff to work with, from my cooperating teachers to the rest of the Bellbrook teachers and administrators. Bellbrook’s obvious sense of community and togetherness is something that I hadn’t expected or experienced in my previous student teaching experiences.”

“I have enjoyed teaching at Bellbrook, mainly because the students are super fun kids,” Stemple said. “I also observed at Dayton Regional STEM School and Fairborn High School. I would say Bellbrook is different than those because Bellbrook is an area where most people are pretty well-off financially. In Dayton and Fairborn, there were a lot more kids whose families were struggling financially.”

Many Bellbrook students have been impacted by student teachers from Wright State in their time in the district. Senior Catey Caldwell plans to attend WSU next fall to study Early Childhood Education. 

“A couple of years ago, in Mr. Parks’ class, we had a student teacher, Mr. Thurston, who was attending Wright State and had a lot of insight into the field of education,” Caldwell said. “I did not know I wanted to be a teacher at the time, but it was cool to learn about Wright State from his perspective.”

“I want to go into teaching because I like to be around kids, and I enjoy helping them learn,” Caldwell said. “I look forward to building connections with the students and having fun while learning.”