New Sioux Falls teachers: ‘This is what I want to do’

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The Sioux Falls School District hired 148 new teachers for this school year, with many of them having taught for less than five years of experience.

Molli Tarabelsi just graduated college, and after years of being taught, she is excited to now be a teacher.

“I want to spend every day in school. I would go home and I would teach all my stuffed animals, like what I learned in school that day,” First Grade Dual Immersion teacher Molli Tarabelsi said.

While she’s always dreamed of teaching, she cemented the idea her last year of high school.

“I really thought about, like, ‘Is this what I want to do?’ And I think part of it was like, I know that I’m not going to get paid a lot, like as much as you would in a different career path. But I was like, ‘No, this is what I want to do,'” Tarabelsi said.

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She says the best part about teaching is watching her student’s grow.

“Getting to work with kids and like seeing their personalities. I love how they’re so like unapologetically themselves because they’re, they’re just they’re excited. They love life. They’re having a good time. They want to learn,” Tarabelsi said.

For Alejandra Suaza, it’s not her first year teaching, but it is her first year in Sioux Falls. While she loves working with children now, she originally wanted to be a doctor.

“Through just studying my major, I found out that I could start saving lives through education. So I feel like education is now my way of saving lives,” Fifth Grade Dual Immersion teacher Alejandra Suaza said.

One of the things she loves about being a teacher is watching her students understand the lessons.

“Seeing the kids’ smiles, seeing how when they get a topic and they’re like, ‘Oh no, I got it’ is for me is like, ‘Oh, great. So that means that I am doing a good job,'” Suaza said.

She also encourages others that it’s never too late to become a teacher.

“Some people usually start doing other things, and then down the way of life, they decided they want to become teachers and they found out that they are great teachers. So it’s like, okay, so you found it or probably the job found you,” Suaza said.

As these two teachers make their mark at Rosa Parks Elementary.

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“I feel very fortunate this year with the two that we’ve got. They have been connecting with their colleagues all summer long so they don’t necessarily feel new, even though they are new to Sioux Falls and to our school district,” Rosa Parks Principal Kiersta Machacek said.

While Tarabelsi and Suaza have found their callings, they have advice for others looking into the teaching profession.

“I feel is like more like a work of like you do with your heart. You really need to work with your patience if you are not too patient like you need to actually kind of like do it and, and just be for them,” Suaza said.

“Those are the people that you need in the classroom, are the people who want to be there instead of people who are just doing it to do it,” Tarabelsi said.

The Rosa Parks Principal says bringing in new people brings new energy and positive vibes to the school.