4C Academy Nursing Instructor Jeanifer Hill learning on the job

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the third installment in a series profiling 10 non-traditional instructors at the Commodore Conyers College and Career Academy.

ALBANY — After more than seven years as a nurse, Jeanifer Hill had a front-row seat as student nurses came and went through the neonatal unit at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital. Over that time Hill, a Lee County High School and Georgia Southwestern State University graduate, became concerned about one of the questions she was being asked by nursing students.

“The longer I was there (at Phoebe), I was seeing more and more students asking simple questions about communication. I’m not talking about the skills aspect, but more about soft skills — how to communicate with the parents of patients,” Hill said. “Then I heard about (the 4C Academy). I have a great passion for health care and wanted to get involved in the students’ lives at an earlier age before they even get to the hospital.

“It seemed like a great opportunity to do that here, so I applied on the Dougherty County School System website.”

Hill is one of 10 non-traditional academy instructors in a faculty of 24 and said she sees her new mission as reaching potential nursing students at an earlier age. At the 4CA, her day is divided between instructing ninth- and tenth-graders.

“The earlier we can get the terminology and the soft skills embedded into them, the easier it will be for them to go through college,” Hill said. “And, hopefully, they will be more prepared as they enter the work force.”

Hill said she thinks the 4CA provides that environment.

“I love this place. It’s a great opportunity for students to come here and get college credit and learn how to collaborate with each other and their instructors,” she said. “It’s a great way to intermingle all these different walks of life.”

While her students are learning and progressing, so is Hill.

“I’ve never taught in a school setting before, so this is all brand new to me,” she said. “We’ve been teaching here since August 1st, and my biggest challenge right now is classroom management. Learning how to keep 20 ninth-graders engaged for our 90-minute block isn’t easy. But I’m learning and getting better with that.

“We also have a lot of awesome teachers here who are willing to work with us.”

Hill stressed that the academy is about more than just academics.

“We encourage our students to speak to each other in the hallways and always remind them we are holding them to a higher standard personally, as well as getting them ready for college,” she said. “That first day in class, when they came in, they really didn’t know what to expect. As they have come along, it seems to be working. Our students also carry the skills they learn here back to their home school.

“Working with ninth-graders and 1oth-graders, I have learned that the maturity level of the students is completely different. I didn’t think that just a single school year would make such a difference. The afternoon ninth-graders seem to need more structure than the morning group of 10th-graders.”

All in all, Hill said she is comfortable in her new environment.

“I think I’ll be happy here” she said. “I feel it’s a great place to make a difference in the kids’ lives.”

The academy’s 450 students are spending their first semester exploring its “pathway” environment. At semester’s end, students will choose from among more than 14 different career paths and be scheduled into a structured curriculum.