Will Fluetsch discovered his calling while tutoring young Afghan refugees. Now the Brighton High alum is heading back to the Sandy schools where he grew up, this time as an eighth-grade math teacher at Indian Hills Middle School.
Fluetsch was one of the first-year Canyons School District educators who gathered at Union Middle School on Tuesday, Aug. 4, for the start of a weeklong new-teacher orientation. Two other rookies assigned to Sandy middle schools and one headed to a Cottonwood Heights campus joined him, each carrying a different path into the profession and a shared set of first-day nerves.
"I realized that teaching was the kind of thing that I wanted to do for the rest of my life … It felt really impactful and meaningful. I wanted to be in a career where I could clearly see the positive impact," Fluetsch told the Deseret News.
Bethany Crandall, a Davis County native and recent BYU graduate, will teach family consumer sciences and digital literacy at Eastmont Middle School. Heber Clawson, a Brigham City native who attended Southern Utah University, will teach Spanish at Union Middle. Kaitlynn Johnston, who recently moved from Iowa, will teach seventh-grade science at Butler Middle School in Cottonwood Heights.
Clawson walked into his new Union Middle classroom to find bare walls and scattered desks. He told the Deseret News the experience was daunting at first, but knowing he wasn't abandoned eased his nerves. Veteran teachers at the school quickly stepped in to help him with setup and classroom management tactics.
What the district looks for
Kelly Tauteoli, Canyons School District's assistant human resources director over secondary schools, said the quality she prizes most in new hires is genuine passion for being in the classroom with kids.
Tauteoli noted that rookie teachers often struggle with classroom management, and that the first year brings what she called "a giant mountain of planning" as educators build every lesson from scratch. She said collaboration with mentors and fellow first-year teachers gives rookies the boost they need to build lasting careers.
The orientation is part of the district's PEAKS program, which helps new educators transition into the classroom and learn Canyons expectations and best practices. Human Resources Director Tiffany Midgley told KSL that teaching positions are becoming increasingly competitive, with hundreds of applicants vying for a limited number of openings each year.
Statewide, Utah welcomes roughly 3,000 first-year K-12 public school teachers each school year, according to Utah State Board of Education spokesperson Marie Denson. All new teachers are required to have a mentor.
What's next
Canyons School District classes for grades 1-12 begin Monday, Aug. 17. Kindergartners start Wednesday, Aug. 19. Families needing in-person registration help can attend a session at Mt. Jordan Middle School, 9351 S. Mountaineer Ln., Sandy, on Thursday, Aug. 6, from 4-7 p.m. More details are in our earlier Canyons back-to-school registration coverage.
