Six Wylie High School students represented the district at the Educators Rising National Conference in Portland, Oregon, in June, marking the second consecutive year the school's future-educators program sent competitors to the national stage.

Khloe Fickes, Hayden Hood, Hope Rogers, Julianne Feightner, Hannah Bailey and Emma Pace earned their spots after advancing through a field of 32 Wylie High members who competed at the Texas Association of Future Educators state competition this spring. The national conference, themed "Teach with Purpose, Lead with Passion," drew more than 3,800 aspiring educators from across the country to Portland from June 20-23, according to Educators Rising.

Teacher Amber Jansa, who sponsors Wylie High's TAFE chapter, told the Wylie Growl this is the second group she has guided to nationals. The first cohort graduated in May.

"This graduating class is the first one who had students medal at nationals," Jansa said.

That Class of 2026 group set a high bar: Josh Corrigan placed first in Public Speaking, Taylor Wood earned second and third in Creative Lecture in consecutive years, and Jenna Thompson took third in Children's Literature. The group also qualified in Ethical Dilemma.

The Wylie ISD Board of Trustees formally recognized the TAFE chapter as both a state competitor and a national qualifier at its May 18 meeting. Sachse High School's Reese Bryant, competing through Garland ISD's TAFE program, also qualified for the same national conference after winning at state.

Jansa said ahead of the June conference that the chapter's growth at Wylie High has been exciting. Results from the six students' national competition events have not been published.

The 2026-27 school year begins Thursday, Aug. 13, and the chapter's back-to-back national appearances position it as a growing pipeline for Wylie students interested in education careers.