SAN DIEGO, Calif. – All week long, educators from Arkansas and beyond are getting a taste of the Marine Corps life in San Diego,
On the final day of the Marine Educators Workshop, they say they’re excited to share what they learned with their students.
Kelsea Beasley, a teacher at Caddo Academy, said she is glad she came to the workshop because she had her students in mind.
“I have a few students of mine as we have gone through the week and I’m excited to bring back this information. I really feel like it will help them choose what path they want to take,” Beasley said.
Rudy Clemens, a career coach for Hot Springs School District, said the workshop helped him learn more about the Marines and be able to give better information to the interested students.
“Help me in more ways than I could imagine because now when it comes to promoting the Marines to my students, it’s no longer me just telling them it’s a form of military service,” Clemens said. “Being a Marine is so much more than just the title itself.”
Educators had the opportunity to see the Marine recruits training at boot camp and get a small taste of it by doing some of the exercises recruits experience.
On the last day of the workshop, all the educators received a certificate of completion and highlights for their marksmanship when they participated in weapons and field training.
Beasley reacted by saying, “I’m so excited to hang this up in my classroom.” While Hamburg High School principal Edward Tucker added, “It absolutely was one of the best experiences of my life.”
On Friday, educators went to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego Graduation, where they saw recruits successfully transition from civilian to Marine. Jack Anzalone graduated at the top of his company out of over 200 other recruits and said how he was honored to earn his way to becoming a Marine.
“I took it up on the challenge, I put myself in an uncomfortable position, which is the most important thing because compliance and comfortability doesn’t help you grow, it keeps you in the same place,” Anzalone said. “So, I took the step to join the United States Marine Corps, and I flourished here. I put my heart and soul, blood, sweat and tears into it.”
Multiple educators say hearing from Marines’ experiences personally helped them gain a better perspective and they feel like they’re able to give more information, many stories and even some contacts they can share with their students.
“It’s going to be so nice to offer up to them and let them know this is something you can consider,” Tucker said.