For the first time since reaching school age, Emily Sluis isn’t returning as a student this back-to-school season.

Instead, she’s swapping her backpack for a gradebook as she begins her career at Beechwood Elementary as a fifth-grade math teacher.

Sluis’ ascent to the teacher’s desk included a stretch at Covenant College, where she earned her degree.

The transition into teaching didn’t come without some surprises, said Sluis, a Vicksburg native.

“There’s a lot more preparation than what you would think,” she said. “You spend a lot of money as a first-year teacher.”

Despite preparation, Sluis said she was still learning even once school started.

“I think one of the things that kind of surprised me is there’s a lot of little things,” she said. “Like when we go into the cafeteria, we go in this way and not that way. There’s just a lot of little things that don’t have a set procedure written down.”

Sluis said she really likes her first group of students.

“They’re really quiet,” she said. “I’ve heard this group is supposedly really quiet, across the board, all of fifth grade.”

Sluis added her fifth-graders are sweet.

“They have really good manners,” she said. “They’re opening the doors for each other and stopping the line if somebody needs to get through.”

Sluis said she also enjoys her new colleagues.

“My team is great,” she said. “They’re very supportive and encouraging. The Beechwood staff is wonderful.”

Sluis said she originally wanted to be a teacher because she enjoys being with children.

“They give me energy,” she said. “I like the occupation as a whole because you can be with a diverse group of people. I like the diversity of it.”

Sluis said math has always been her favorite subject.

“Growing up with math there were a lot of techniques and strategies I had to use to learn,” she said. “Some kids have a hard time learning sometimes, so knowing the problems I had, I want to teach the students strategies that helped me.”

Sluis described her first day as rewarding and said it reaffirmed her decision to become a teacher.

“I’m looking forward to getting to know the kids more,” she said. “I can’t wait to see them grow and learn and become leaders in the classroom and the community.”