Catie Koruba likely has more experience guiding students that most first year teachers.

"I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher," said Koruba, Vice President of the Society of Emerging Educators at Temple University Ambler and a member of the Kappa Delta Pi Education Honors Society. "Growing up, I was in Girl Scouts; I volunteered with the Special Olympics; I was a camp counselor. I always wanted to work with kids and help others. There was no other professional path for me."

Upon graduation, she'll be returning to College Settlement Camp of Philadelphia as a Teacher Naturalist/Weekend Coordinator. Located in Horsham, College Settlement Camp provides a wide variety of experiences to economically disadvantaged children from throughout the Philadelphia area. Koruba has been honing her skills teaching and guiding children at the camp since 2009.

"I started out as a residential camp counselor. Today, I'm a unit leader for the day camp, overseeing 70 kids and 6 to 8 counselors," said Koruba, who received her associate's degree in Education from Bucks County Community College prior to transferring to Temple to complete her bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education (Pre-K through 4). "The camp offers wonderful experiential learning opportunities for children."

Working at College Settlement Camp has also proven to be an excellent learning experience for her as well, said Koruba, "particularly with classroom management."

"You have to develop your management style right from day one and ensure you're being heard because you want the students' experience to be fun, educational and safe," she said. "I've incorporated a lot of the skills I've learned at the camp right in the classroom."

While continuing her work at College Settlement Camp, Koruba will also begin substitute teaching while she seeks a permanent teaching position.

"I think what is terrific about Temple's program is that it emphasizes practical experience — you're almost in front of a classroom right out of the gate. By my second semester, I was in a classroom teaching lessons," said Koruba. "I developed environmental lesson plans that teachers coming to Temple Ambler's annual EarthFest celebration could access and use in their classrooms. At Ambler a lot of our teachers are working professionals who can talk to us about what is and isn't working in their classrooms — that's such essential insight to have as we take the next step into the field."

While at Temple, Koruba used her classroom and practical skills student teaching at Guth Elementary School in the Pennridge School District.

"I was in a first grade classroom with a wonderful teacher who let me get the full experience of running a class. It started with one lesson, then a half day, then full days of leading the classroom," she said. "I was so fortunate that the school district was so welcoming and so willing to provide me with that kind of experience."

Koruba said she came to Temple with the mindset that she would get the most out of her education both in and out of the classroom. It's extremely difficult to argue that she hasn't done just that.

A Temple University Owl Ambassador, Koruba will graduate with a stellar 3.91 grade point average. She was also an instrumental part of numerous charitable events benefiting groups such as the Inter-Faith Housing Alliance, Cradles to Crayons, the Mattie Dixon Community Cupboard and Kisses for Kyle.

"I think one of the biggest benefits I got out of my extracurricular activities was improving my public speaking skills, which is obviously an essential skill if you ever hope to run a classroom," she said. "Down the road, I would like to continue my education in graduate school — I'm certified for pre-K through 4 and would like to add 4 to 8 in some specific area such as English, math, science or social studies. For right now, I want to teach in a capacity where I can best put my abilities to good use whether that's in my own classroom, a camp setting, or some other position that I haven't realized yet."

Koruba said her teaching philosophy is simple and inspired by a wise, fuzzy, orange source.

"I look to a quote from Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. 'Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not,'" she said. "As educators, unless we care, our students aren't going to get the education that they need and they will be left behind. It is our job to ensure that every student gets the education that they deserve; we are helping to raise the next generation of leaders."