Two generations of Golden Apple Scholars share a dream: make an impact on others through education
“Dad! Dad! I got in!” Evan Hopper screamed, as he announced his acceptance into the Golden Apple Scholars Class of 2020 while mushroom hunting with his father, Aaron. After growing up in a home where both parents were teachers, and with a father who is a proud member of the Golden Apple Scholars Class of 1993, Evan’s acceptance into the program was a major milestone and the first step toward a career as an educator that first appealed to him partway through his high school years.
“I enjoyed helping everybody in class with homework,” Evan recalls. “I said to myself; I could do this, I am enjoying this, I want to learn how to be a better teacher.”
Evan Hopper, 2020 Golden Apple Scholar
Aaron Hopper, 1993 Golden Apple Scholar
Always highly engaged in the educational experience as a three-sport athlete and Physical Education coach, this realization sparked an interest in Evan that now has a chance to blossom as the college freshman participates in the Scholars program. What Evan had to persevere through to get to this moment makes it even more special. Last year, Kimberly Hopper, Aaron’s wife and Evan’s mother, was tragically killed in a car accident. Despite experiencing unimaginable loss, Evan continued to work toward his goals and finished applying to the Golden Apple Scholars program.
“I am really proud of Evan for pushing through and look forward to future years of Golden Apple being impactful in his life,” his father Aaron said.
Before beginning his freshman year this fall at Blackburn College, where he will major in physical education and sports management, Evan participated in Golden Apple’s Scholar Institute, a rigorous, multi-week teacher preparation program for Scholars.
“Golden Apple is guiding us through it all,” Evan said. “We’re going to learn on the job. We’re going to be figuring it out and seeing what works and what doesn’t. I’ll be able to work and have fun with it, and it’ll be great.”
For Aaron, who is the current superintendent of Panhandle school district in Raymond, Illinois, knowing that his son will benefit from the program as he did fills him with pride. He describes his experience as a Golden Apple Scholar as an “instrumental influence” in his life that instilled in him a need to understand students to effectively reach and inspire them. Among the most important lessons he learned in the program was that being a teacher is about giving of yourself and finding opportunities to help others. It’s a lesson that has driven him to continue seeking opportunities to positively impact students in the years since.
“Golden Apple’s mission to prepare teachers to be effective in schools-of-need provides specific direction and opportunities for aspiring teachers,” he said. “What we do today really impacts their lives later, and I’ve kept that focus throughout my career.”
Beyond the immediate opportunities for his son to grow as a teacher and as a person, one of the reasons Aaron is thrilled about his son becoming a teacher is because, as a superintendent, he knows all too well the current need for teachers in Illinois as a result of the state’s teacher shortage. At the beginning of the 2019 school year, there were more than 1,800 unfilled teaching positions in Illinois.
He has personally felt the weight of this shortage as his district has struggled to fill critical positions.
“It has taken a toll on our school system,” Aaron said. “We’re asking people to do multiple roles because we can’t find staff members to really work with kids in specific areas.”
Aaron points out the work Golden Apple is doing to become a material solution to the teacher shortage is vital to finding and preparing more teachers.
“People need to know what it means to be a teacher – the role that a teacher plays in the community and how impactful they can be on people’s lives,” Aaron said.
Father and son agree that any aspiring teacher should apply for the Golden Apple Scholars program because the preparation and career-long support Scholars receive is a game-changer.
According to Evan, the application process involves much soul-searching and self-reflection that makes one look inward and ask, “who am I and what do I want?” He goes on to say, “even if you’re not selected, it’s a great experience going through the process and being able to look at yourself.”
Reinforcing his son’s standpoint, Aaron describes the application process as important because it helps the students refine their life choices. He had words of encouragement to recruits saying,
“To whoever is reading this, you can do it. And when you get selected, Golden Apple will walk with you and help you develop; it is their mission.”
The Golden Apple Scholars application is open and accepted students receive up to $23,000 in tuition assistance and stipends, mentoring, job placement assistance and many other great benefits. To apply to the Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois teacher preparation program or learn more about the benefits, visit the Scholars application page.