'It Will Help You Be The Best Teacher You Can Be'

Libby Fregoso BEd ’22 wants to make a difference.

“I know how cheesy that may sound, but it’s really the simplest way to explain the impact that a teacher can have and the reason I feel called to this career,” she said.

Fregoso has volunteered to mentor at-risk youth and as an advocate for children in foster care — both of which inspired her to make her career about youth.

“I believe that as an educator I will be able to be a stable, positive influence for children in my community, especially for those who need it most.”

Fregoso is pursuing a Bachelor of Education in Teaching and English Language Learning, or BEd, at Pacific University. The flexible program is designed with flexibility to support community college transfer students, as well as K-12 classified staff interested in becoming teachers. Students study at Pacific’s Woodburn, Eugene or Forest Grove campuses, or in hybrid programs from their own communities, and they are immersed in local schools.

“Pacific’s BEd program is flexible and conscious of their class scheduling and student-teaching for students who live outside the campus area,” Fregoso said. 

Plus, she added, the 1,500 hours of hands-on classroom experience gives future teachers a head start.

“This was important to me because this program will have me in the classroom as a student-teacher in my first year and will set me up to be eligible to teach in my own classroom a full year before other university programs,” Fregoso said.

“This program is a lot of work,” she said, “but it will help you be the best teacher you can be.”