BILLINGS — Q2, Education Foundation for Billings Public Schools, Western Security Bank, and City Brew Coffee have teamed up for “One Class at a Time.” It's a program that recognizes teachers who go above and beyond to help their students.
Meet Haylea McNeil, a dynamic physical education teacher who's passionate about getting her young students on the path to a healthy lifestyle — and she's having a blast doing it.
"In PE class, it's a lot of games, a lot of chaos, a lot of noise," said Mrs. McNeil. "But it's also a lot of fun."
She's not the type to stand on the sidelines, either.
"There's a lot of games that I get to participate in with them, rather than teaching the whole time, and so that's kind of... that's fun for me. I try to get involved with at least one class a day, if not all of them."
With so many distractions today, from screens to social media, Mrs. McNeil makes it a priority to get kids up, active, and fully engaged.
"I can do as much as I can at school. At school, we try to keep them off screens, and if we are on screens, it's learning."
One of the ways she keeps her students engaged is by bringing lots of laughter to her class.
"School is so serious for kids these days, and I can be kind of the one spot where we can kind of let our guard down and just have fun. I want to be someone who they remember when they're older, and they're like, 'Oh, I remember my PE teacher because she was funny, and I could joke with her, and she didn't take things too seriously.'"
But when it comes to being a role model, she doesn't take that lightly.
"Kids these days especially need good role models, and not just inside their classroom, but I feel like I'm more outside the classroom because we get to do a lot more fun things. I like to make an impact on them by creating the relationships and kind of being a friend to them because I feel like that's important for mental health, and mental health goes with all the other parts of health we learn about."
A teacher guiding her students not only physically, but emotionally and mentally, Mrs. McNeil's impact truly reaches far beyond the gym. That's why the Education Foundation for Billings Public Schools was proud to honor her with a $500 grant, proudly sponsored by Western Security Bank. And to top it off, City Brew Coffee was on hand to surprise her with a $150 gift card and a few extra tokens of appreciation. Congratulations!
If you would like to nominate a deserving teacher, click here.
