Tarleton commencement speaker out to be a world changer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Olivia Wilbanks practices what she preaches.

The speaker for the Tarleton State University College of Education commencement at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 11, will address graduates and their guests about changing the world through education.

She already has some experience in that area.

Active in the Tarleton Baptist Student Ministry, Olivia traveled with the group to an orphanage in Beirut, Lebanon, to teach English to refugee Syrian students displaced by the war in their homeland.

“I was teaching them to read and write using a book called ‘What Do You Do With an Idea?’ At the end of the book I asked them about their own ideas to change the world. They had really big ideas,” she said. “I think it was because of the war’s impact on them.

“I got answers like how they wanted to free people. One student wanted to become a pirate so he could rescue people. One wanted to be a doctor so he could heal people who are injured.”

As a senior in Leander, Olivia went to Tarleton for a visit and tour at the suggestion of her mom. It turned out to be a perfect match.

“I went to Texan Tour and everybody there was so friendly. I smile a lot. I have since I was in kindergarten. The thing I liked about Tarleton was they smiled back. It’s just like a big family. It made me feel like this was where I was supposed to be. This was the perfect place for me.”

As a student at Tarleton, she was active in Residential Living and Learning, claiming one RL of the Year Award; Tarleton Professional Educators, BSM, the American Sign Language Club, and Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society for education.

She will receive her degree in interdisciplinary studies and use it in conjunction with her early childhood teaching certificate when she starts as a second grade teacher next fall in the Comanche Independent School District.

“My commencement speech revolves around my theory of education,” she said. “People in education are world changers because they’re investing in people who are going to change the world.”

She wants to continue her education in a master’s program at Tarleton. She’s debating whether to pursue a graduate degree that will help make her a reading specialist or to take a track toward education administration.

“I’d really like to be an administrator one day. Maybe become a principal, so I can have a larger group to invest into. A teacher invests in maybe 20 students, but a principal invests in all the teachers who invest in the students. Kind of a ripple effect. The wave gets larger and larger.”

In her own estimation, her plans are bolstered by the training she received at Tarleton.

“I didn’t know how well-prepared I was until I got out into the field,” said Olivia, who is a student teacher in Glen Rose. “I knew things that 30-year teachers didn’t know. They would go over in-depth data analyses that my professors would pound into us, have us practice. People all over were impressed. I feel extremely well-equipped.”

That’s good. Because it takes a lot to change the world.

Tarleton is part of a Texas A&M University System statewide campaign, “We Teach Texas,” that encourages education as a career. A&M System’s 11 universities produce more fully certified teachers than any other university system in Texas.

Tarleton, founding member of The Texas A&M University System, provides a student-focused, value-driven education marked by academic innovation and a dedication to transform today’s scholars into tomorrow’s leaders. It offers degree programs to more than 13,000 students at Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Midlothian, RELLIS Academic Alliance in Bryan, and online, emphasizing real-world learning experiences that address societal needs while maintaining its core values of tradition, integrity, civility, excellence, leadership and service.

Contact: Phil Riddle, News and Information Specialist
817-484-4415
[email protected]

A founding member of The Texas A&M System, Tarleton State is breaking records — in enrollment, research, scholarship, athletics, philanthropy and engagement — while transforming the lives of nearly 17,000 students in Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Bryan and online. True to Tarleton’s values of excellence, integrity and respect, academic programs emphasize real world learning and address regional, state and national needs.
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