By Kamdyn Olson
Four years ago LPS welcomed Mrs. Kaitlin Spicka and Ms. Jacinda Davis, with warm arms and joyful smiles. These two have worked alongside each other in the 7th and 8th grade reading and language arts classes for four years. Their very first year they worked together in a joint class, the class of 2027. Those students started their days off with Ms. Davis in writing and then they finished off their lesson with Mrs. Spicka in reading. Having this joint class created a forever friendship.
“We had to get close very quickly. I had no idea who she [Kaitlin Spicka] was before Louisville,” Davis stated.
They met for the first time at a teacher in-service day, then met for lunch one day and all they knew about each other was that they were going to be coworkers who shared the seventh graders somehow. They continued to meet on the weekends getting coffee while they did all of the planning for their joint class. Eventually that grew into hanging out outside of school not as co-workers but as friends.
Working at Louisville not only created a friendship but created amazing memories for Ms. Davis and Mrs. Spicka, who became known as “The Twins.” From the video of a school legend, Mr. Hagge, falling in the downstairs hallway, to the memory of fully convincing the students that they were actually twins, these two hold many memories. Looking back on their careers, Louisville has left an important impact on their careers.
“Louisville was my first teaching job, and it’s kind of how I started my career, and also where I’m temporarily ending it. But it’s been a great learning curve from being that first year teacher and not knowing what to do and how it really works to feeling pretty confident in my abilities as a teacher and moving forward just with new things,” Spicka stated.
As Louisville was providing Mrs. Spicka with a learning environment it was also providing Ms. Davis with a personal environment.
“I’ve grown a ton at Louisville. I’ve had to learn on the fly. I’ve learned to be organized, compassionate, and caring. I’m very thankful that Louisville was my first job because this was a really great place to learn, great kids, all of my coworkers are amazing, and I got to learn with them. I got to learn with Mrs. Spicka, so I’m very thankful for Louisville,” Davis stated.
Louisville will leave an impact on these teachers as they continue to learn and grow in another environment. Coincidentally, they will continue to learn and grow in the presence of one another. Though they are both moving to a different district they will end up being closer to each other than they are today.
Managing time and well being while being in charge of a classroom can be stressful, but having a good relationship with the people around you can take a little bit of the stress off of the day. No matter how tough times got you could always find Mrs. Kaitlin Spicka and Ms. Jacinda Davis alongside one another.