Massie named Canyon Ridge Intermediate teacher of year
MUSTANG — Many of Tiffany Massie’s students at Mustang Public Schools’ Canyon Ridge Intermediate struggle with basic skills that other students take for granted.
They may have severe cognitive or physical disabilities. Walking might be a struggle. Others are nonverbal.
The world might see everything the students cannot do on their own. But Massie, who was named campus teacher of the year, sees nothing but their potential. Every achievement, no matter how small, is celebrated. She can’t talk about what her students mean to her without crying.
“I see what’s in them, and it’s up to me to try to get it out of them,” she said. “Everyone has knowledge inside of them, but not everyone can get it out.”
Massie started her career in speech pathology and worked three years in Cache as a speech teacher. She couldn’t shake the idea that there were students who needed help with speech all day long. She gravitated to the children with the most profound disabilities.
“When I was at Cache and I moved from speech to the severe profound classroom, it was liberating to me,” she said. “I started with 76 kids. I went to six different facilities doing speech, and then I went to teaching eight kids. I knew I could impact those eight kids significantly.”
This is Massie’s ninth year at Mustang. She left for two years to work for the Oklahoma Assistive Technology Center, where she traveled to districts across the state, helping teachers evaluate what kind of assistive technology would help their students.
Some students who couldn’t talk might speak through a device that says the words for them. Another technology might help students with little movement of their hands be able to write.
When the contract was over, there was no question where she wanted to be.
“I love Mustang,” she said. “If I’m going to be in the classroom, (this) is where I want to be.”
Teaching and serving
Massie offers a monthly baked-potato day at Canyon Ridge Intermediate. Her students have learned the ins and outs of getting the trays ready for condiments and filling orders.
She also started a parents night out. Special-needs students are dropped off at the school gym to spend the evening with a team of volunteers.
For the holiday season, the students wrapped gifts while the parents enjoyed a free evening. At the last event, Key Club students came to help.
“I gave them a rundown,” she said of the mainstream students. “We have kids who are not potty trained. We have others who are nonverbal, but they’re just like you and I. Don’t be afraid to treat them like everyone else. They’re not babies, so don’t talk to them like babies. Talk to them like they’re fifth- and sixth-graders.
“The students who volunteered were so helpful. They weren’t afraid to jump in,” Massie said.
In the classroom, Massie meets the students where they are socially, academically and emotionally.
“There’s so much life in them, and so many people overlook them,” she said. “I pray all the time that everybody else has the same heart and a desire to get it out of them.” Shannon Rigsby is communications officer for Mustang Public Schools.