TEACHER OF THE YEAR: Alicia Moreland focuses on strong teacher-student relationships

Published 8:00 am Wednesday, February 2, 2022

This article is part of a series by The Vicksburg Post, in partnership with the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce, featuring each of the nominees for teacher of the year honors.

Alicia Moreland, an English and language arts teacher at Warren Central Intermediate School, said she strives for student achievement by building a strong “teacher-student” relationship. 

“When a student knows that you expect their best and that you care, they will perform for you,” Moreland said.

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Moreland is a finalist for the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce’s Educator of the Year award. The chamber will select and announce one elementary and one secondary teacher of the year at the chamber luncheon, which has been rescheduled to Mar. 1. The winner of each award will receive $1,000 from Ameristar Casino and the runner-up for each award will receive $500 from Mutual Credit Union. 

Moreland started teaching at Peeples Middle School as a 6th and 7th-grade middle school science teacher in 2007. In 2010, Moreland became an English language arts teacher at Warren Central Intermediate School in the Vicksburg Warren School District. Moreland received a bachelor of science in biology from Alcorn State University in 2001. Then received a master of arts in teaching from Alcorn State University in 2011. 

“I engage my students by encouraging and connecting. This makes them achieve that growth that is expected of them,” Moreland said. 

In her Educator of the Year application, Moreland described the benefits of one-on-one and small group tutoring along with peer tutoring. 

“The tutoring sessions allow the student to get feedback from me and their classmates. Feedback is key to correcting mistakes and learning outcomes,” she said. 

She expressed how this teaching method allows her students to grow when they understand concepts such as the author’s point of view, intentions and expectations in a story. Students begin to comprehend that there are two sides to every story and the one telling the story determines the details within it. 

However academic achievement does not go unnoticed while in Moreland’s class. 

“Praises and rewards make the student want to try harder and therefore information is retained and student achievement improves,” Moreland said.