Sheets

ELKINS — Davis & Elkins College celebrates three students, Wesley Strawderman, Bracie Sheets, and Haden Wamsley, for their selection in the Clinical Teacher of Record Program.

During the Spring 2026 semester, these students will join schools in Randolph and Tucker Counties as primary educators.

Strawderman, a Mathematics Education major, will be teaching eighth-grade math at Tucker Valley Elementary Middle School.

Sheets, pursuing a degree in Elementary Education at D&E, will be teaching Kindergarten at Midland Elementary School.

Wamsley will be placed at Elkins Middle School, and is preparing to graduate with a degree in Multi-Categorical Special Education, including Autism.

“This program allows us to work closely with our partners in Tucker and Randolph County to address the critical teacher shortage,” says Assistant Professor of Education and Chair of Teacher Education Melanie Gribble. “Our students apply what they’ve learned in our program directly into the classroom. They’re not just observing, they are leading lessons, building relationships with students, and developing as educators under expert mentorship.”

The Clinical Teacher of Record Program places highly qualified teacher candidates, who’ve passed their Praxis Content Knowledge Exams, in classrooms where no fully certified teacher has been employed. These candidates complete required clinical experience while serving as the primary teacher and receive guidance from district mentor teachers and Davis & Elkins College supervisors. The program helps to highlight the relationship between D&E and county partners and serves as further evidence of the College’s accreditation approval process.

Strawderman

Wamsley