Mount Saint Mary College senior Riley Senk, seen here teaching kindergarten students at the New Windsor School, will graduate in May.
As her excitement for graduation grows, so too does Mount Saint Mary College senior Riley Senk’s enthusiasm for her burgeoning career as a teacher.
“From a young age, I always knew I wanted to be in a classroom,” said Senk, a first-generation college student from Staten Island, N.Y. “Me having this opportunity to go to college is huge. I wouldn’t be here without my parents.”
Senk is a History major and Psychology minor, and is on track to earn certifications in Early Childhood Education, Childhood Education, and Special Education. Once she finishes college this May, she’ll be able to teach students from Kindergarten through sixth grade.
While most teacher candidates complete two major student teaching placements in the senior year, Senk’s path was even more robust: She did three. Her first placement was at Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School in a third-grade classroom, and her second in New Windsor School, in a second-grade classroom. In a third and final placement, Senk was again in New Windsor School, this time teaching in a kindergarten classroom.
“I want to be able to work with all different age groups,” noted Senk. “Having that Early Childhood certification is great… In that age range, you can really help to shape them into who they’re going to become in the future. You’re the stepping stone to how the rest of their school years are going to look.”
Helping young students to build a strong academic foundation early on is a driving force for Senk, who grew up with dyslexia – though she wasn’t diagnosed until she was 16. By that point, she had learned how to compensate and was continuing with her studies as normal. But some people couldn’t see past her dyslexia, she explained.
“I was always told ‘you’re not going to graduate high school,’ or ‘you’re not going to college,’ that kind of stuff,” said Senk. “That’s why being that teacher who pays attention to her students, knows that’s going on with them, and can help them is so important to me.”
Despite her busy schedule, Senk remains a familiar face on campus. She serves as an Admissions Ambassador, the vice president of Programming for the Student Government Association, and an Orientation Leader, as well as playing on the college’s Women’s Golf team. She’s also a member of five honor societies, including Kappa Delta Pi (Education), Tri-Alpha (first generation college students), and Psi Chi (Psychology).
With her time as a Mount undergrad nearly in the rearview, Senk finds herself reflecting on the past four years. While the start of her academic journey at the college came with new challenges, she always knew she was in the right place.
“When I visited the Mount [while still in high school], I wasn’t a number, I was a name,” she said. “That was a big thing for me – I want to know my professors by name.”
And that’s exactly what happened. Now, four years later, Senk credits several teachers for helping her succeed throughout her time at the Mount, including Janine Bixler, professor of Education; Sonya Abbye Taylor, chair of the Division of Education; and many others.
As a shy high school student, Senk said that she would never have seen herself being in a leadership position. Accordingly, her advice to new college students is simple: Get involved.
“Don’t be scared to jump out of your comfort zone,” she said. “You could see something you never thought you’d be interested in, and it could be the best thing that ever happened to you.”
She added, “I was so scared to be an Orientation Leader, but I just applied to it. Doing that showed me that I love leadership, and I love to help people. If I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t be the person, or the teacher, that I am today.”